Jennifer Edwards Baker

jbaker@enquirer.com

Controversial attorney Eric Deters was arrested Monday on a charge of failing to appear in a Kenton County courtroom.

In an interview Tuesday, he says he feels like authorities rushed to arrest him with "great glee."

Deters was booked into the Kenton County jail at 10:38 p.m. Monday and released by 12:22 a.m. Tuesday after posting $503 bond, online jail records show.

The arrest came after he was cited June 19 by Fort Wright police for speeding about 5 mph over the limit in Independence, according to Kenton County District Court.

He also was cited for having expired registration plates and failure to maintain required insurance.

Deters appeared in court Thursday morning, where he pled not guilty. He also filed a motion for the recusal of Judge Ken Easterling, whom Deters filed a motion against during former Ben-Gal Sarah Jones' trial. Deters was Jones' attorney in that case.

Deters said he didn't think he had to attend the court appearance on the case Monday morning, so a lawyer in his office attended the proceeding on his behalf.

Later that day, however, another lawyer in Deters' firm was at the courthouse and realized a bench warrant had been issued for him for failing to appear that morning.

Deters said his office contacted the Kenton County Prosecutor's Office and sent a copy of a motion filed to quash the bench warrant, an order resetting the arraignment and a copy of Deters' registration and proof of insurance.

But about 10 p.m., Deters said Kenton County police arrived at his house anyway and took him into custody after ordering him to change into a white shirt for some reason.

He said he feels there was a rush to arrest him on any charge simply because of who he is.

"I've never been arrested in my life," Deters said. "I feel like I didn't receive special treatment. I received un-special treatment because of who I am and that they thought it was really funny to come arrest me on a warrant which they knew was a failure to appear on a traffic ticket. I just think they took great glee in arresting me for something."

Deters is confident the bench warrant will be dismissed when he goes to court Thursday.

Kenton County police and officials with the prosecutor's office say Deters was treated no differently than anyone else.

Chuck Vaughn, chief prosecutor for the Kenton County Prosecutor's Office, said the warrant was in the process of being quashed but that was not complete by the time the courts closed Monday. So the warrant remained active in the system, and Kenton County police saw it.

"This particular shift that worked last night checked the data base and there it was," the Kenton County Police Chief Brian Capps said. "There was an active warrant signed by a judge and we did our business. Nothing personal against Mr. Deters. He was treated like every other citizen.

The chief said some officers like to serve warrants and begin each shift checking a database to see if anyone in their beat has one.

"Some officers check it daily," he said. "Some officers would rather be out doing something else. This particular shift last night checked the data base and there it was,. It's officers discretion."

This is not Deters first run-in with police for a speeding ticket.

Last year, he posted a Facebook video with the headline "the problem with police in southern Kenton County" and lashed out at a person who appears to be a police officer after being stopped.

"You give me my ticket and I'm going to take you to court," he said. "And I'm going to fight that ticket. I mean, do you not have some crime around here? There's a heroin freaking epidemic going around, sir."

In another Facebook post, Deters says "you can't drive 100 yards in the Independence area without passing a cop in traffic or shooting radar. It's ridiculous. We either should cut down on the cops or make them investigate all the drug-related crimes they make no effort to solve!"

The police report at the time said Deters became "extremely belligerent" when stopped.

The report said stationary radar showed Deters' speed as 54 mph in a 35 mph zone. The report noted that Deters "did not know the posted speed limit even though he had resided in (the) area for a number of years."

At the time, Kenton County Police Chief Brian Capps said the sergeant who pulled Deters over acted properly in issuing the speeding ticket.

He added that Deters was cited on Walton Nicholson Pike, or Ky. 16, which is a state route, and has its speed limit set by the state.

Deters stopped practicing law in Kentucky earlier this year after being suspended 60 days by the Kentucky Bar Association for violating the code of conduct for attorneys. When he stopped practicing law in the state he said the bar was "on a continuous mission to 'get' me."

He also was suspended for 60 days in Ohio earlier this year under a reciprocal agreement between the Kentucky and Ohio supreme courts.

In 2012, Deters served a suspension in Kentucky for ethical lapses.