When Curtis Hill, Jr. was elected four years ago to be Indiana’s attorney general, he had a vision for what the office could be under his leadership. Today he says he's matched that vision.
“We've been the most aggressive Indiana Attorney General's office in memory and we've pushed it up to a new level in terms of our national engagement,” Hill told Legal Newsline.
In fact, Hill said he has been engaged directly with the White House and President Trump on national issues.
“We’re a voice on particular topics that are current right now with the racial discord that’s going on in this country, the anarchy that’s occurring and we need to have certain messages and messengers from a conservative viewpoint that can lead in those discussions,” Hill said in an exclusive interview. “That's what I bring to the table.”
The bell tolls for Hill tomorrow at the Republican state convention where he will appeal to delegates to renominate him for another term.
“I am the strongest candidate based upon my prior experience before I was attorney general,” he said. “What I will explain to delegates is that I was attacked in a manner that few have endured and still I continue to do my job.”
As attorney general for the past four years, Hill has gained additional experience in the courtroom, negotiating cases and being in a position to manage a large team of lawyers, he said.
“There is a political component to the Attorney General's office but one of the most important things, when you're running an office of 400 people with 150 lawyers, is you have to be in a position to have the respect of lawyers,” Hill said. “They need to know that you understand the practical side of practicing law before you're making decisions or signing off on the decisions of your staff and that's an important advantage I have over all of the candidates that are running. They do not have that level of practical experience.”
Beyond the benefit of incumbency, he also has an extensive background as a courtroom lawyer, several years as a private practitioner handling all sorts of trials and time under his belt working as the elected prosecuting attorney of Elkhart County, he said.
“I have done the job of Indiana’s attorney general for four years and I’ve done it well,” said Hill. “That's the important thing. We didn't back down. I've proven and established that I'm a fighter who can take a punch. We’ve taken enormous punches but still fought the fight. We did our work on behalf of the legislature with defending statutes. We did our work in the courts, standing up and defending constitutional provisions of the law and that's what people are looking for. They're looking for solid leadership and for leaders that can inspire.”
While it comes with the territory for a conservative like Hill to be discredited by liberal Democrats, what’s surprising is that he was attacked by some Republican leaders but, much like President Trump, Hill has been investigated, cleared and still has support that’s off the charts, he said.
“We've been attacked, investigated and come up standing, battle-scarred, yes but standing and people support my candidacy because I'm doing the job,” said Hill, a married father of five children. “It's the same with President Trump and the reason that's the case is because people, particularly conservatives, appreciate that he's done the job as he said he would, which is so unusual and rare in political life.”
As previously reported, Hill’s term in office has been muddied with allegations of sexual groping.
“Supporters of mine recognize it for what it is and they've been emboldened,” he said. “I was investigated by a legislative body that had no authority to investigate. They came up with nothing. I was investigated by a special prosecutor who cleared me of all criminal activity. I was investigated by an inspector general who cleared me of ethical violations. I've been sued in federal court twice all over the same issues and the cases have been dismissed. It's clearly an attempt to derail me and my leadership.”
Among the obstacles Hill must overcome to gain the Republican nomination a second time is three competitors also vying for the nomination.
Challengers include Todd Rokita, Nate Harter and John Westercamp.
“One similarity is they all seem to be running opposite of me as opposed to running for and citing why they're better for the office,” Hill said.
He had this to say about each one:
Todd Rokita, a former Indiana Secretary of State and 4th District Congressman, has been described as opportunistic, ambitious and a career politician, according to media reports.
“He has been mostly engaged in political life for a number of years,” said Hill. “He’s not a practicing lawyer engaged in trying or negotiating cases, which is the type of work that's done on a regular basis in the Attorney General's office. I've been a practicing lawyer for 32 years and there's a huge amount of distinction in terms of practical and legal experience that forms the basis of the Attorney General’s work in the first place.”
Rokita did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Nate Harter, the twice-elected Decatur County Prosecutor who served as an executive member of Hill’s transition team whom he is now challenging.
“It was certainly a disappointment that Nate chose to jump in the race the way he did because he was not only on our transition team but he was also a member of our inner circle,” Hill said. “He appears to have become opportunistic, which is unfortunate, but that’s a decision Nate made. From my experienced standpoint, Nate is a prosecutor from a small county and one day he will have the experience that's required to run a large office. Right now, he does not. I think time will tell in terms of when that time is right.”
Harter did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
John Westercamp, a private-sector attorney at Bose McKinney & Evans, was a summer law clerk for Judge Melissa May of the Indiana Court of Appeals and Justice Steven David of the Indiana Supreme Court while attending law school at Indiana University.
Hill describes him as very studious but inexperienced.
“He certainly addresses perspectives from a constitutional standpoint but again he has no practical experience,” Hill said. “He’s very young and has only been a lawyer for a few years, much like Nate, and in 10 years or so he may be capable of having the experience to not only manage the AG’s office but also lead from the standpoint of an experienced base. At this particular time, that's not evident in the background of being a private-sector lawyer in of itself.”
Westercamp did not immediately respond to requests for comment.