The Tippecanoe County Superior court on Tuesday denied Wabash Township Trustee Jennifer Teising’s request for a special prosecutor and change of venue.
Teising was indicted in May on charges that she had illegally withdrawn her trustee salary while not a legal resident of the township, charges she denies.
At a hearing for the case earlier this month, Teising's attorney argued that extensive pretrial publicity of the case would keep the trustee from receiving a fair trial.
Her attorney also argued that because Tippecanoe County Prosecuting Attorney Pat Harrington was a Republican, he could not prosecute Teising, a Democrat.
In her order dismissing both motions, Judge Kristen McVey wrote that Teising had failed to prove the existence of an “actual conflict of interest” with regards to Harrington.
Judge McVey also noted that while some of the pretrial publicity was “arguably” inflammatory or inadmissible “the mere possibility of prejudice” was not enough to grant a change of venue.
A status conference for the case is currently set for Sept. 10.