Former Indiana Secretary of Public Safety Jennifer-Ruth Green agreed to a $10,000 fine in her ethics violations complaint, according to an agreed settlement with the Indiana State Ethics Commission.
The agreement, which will be voted on by the commission at its Thursday meeting, states the payment has to be made within 60 days from the date the commission accepts it.
Under the agreement, the commission will not impose further penalties and both sides “shall result in the final disposition of this proceeding.” Green waived her statutory right to a public hearing to contest the complaint, according to the agreement, which Green signed.
Tim Edson, a spokesman for Green, declined to comment Tuesday afternoon.
Edson previously said the complaint is “a baseless, politically motivated hit job.” Green wasn’t given the opportunity to obtain counsel or respond to the “false allegations” before the complaint was filed with the Ethics commission, Edson said.
“The truth is on Jennifer-Ruth Green’s side and this politically motivated smear campaign will fail,” Edson said.
In October, Green announced her candidacy in the Republican primary to face U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan, D-Highland, in Indiana’s first Congressional District in 2026. Green ran against Mrvan in 2022 and lost.
Green, who resigned Sept. 5, faces code of ethics violations for political activity, ghost employment, misuse of state property, and the prohibition against retaliation during her eight-month tenure.
Green, who was appointed to the role in January, allegedly violated the political activity and ghost employment rules by asking employees to generate content and proofread posts on her “Elect Jennifer-Ruth Green” Facebook page, according to the complaint.
When Green had a meeting with a National Republican Congressional Committee political director during work hours in a conference room in a state-owned building, the complaint alleged those were violations of the ghost employment and misuse of state property rules.
Green also violated the ghost employment rule when she asked employees to perform personal tasks for her on state time on multiple occasions, including retrieving her assigned state vehicle from Crown Point, the complaint stated.
Further, Green violated the misuse of state property rule when she included her state title on her Battle-Proven Leadership website, where she promotes training seminars and her book, and when she used and required an employee to use her state vehicle for her personal use, according to the complaint.
After learning that an employee reported her to the OIC, Green violated the prohibition against retaliation when she threatened the employee with demotion or termination and “made derogatory comments” toward the employee, according to the complaint.
The Indiana State Ethics Commission will meet Thursday in the Indiana State Library.
