Court upholds Sussex prosecutor’s suspension over prank

DOVER — A dangerous courthouse prank warranted the 30-day suspension of a veteran Sussex County prosecutor, the Supreme Court determined last week.

The court found that Deputy Attorney General Adam D. Gelof “intentionally, knowingly and recklessly created a potentially very dangerous situation” when he persuaded a bailiff to point a gun toward a prosecutor during back and forth joking at the Sussex County Courthouse on Feb. 4, 2015.

Mr. Gelof’s suspension begins on July 1. He previously was disciplined by the Delaware Department of Justice, including a demotion to an entry level position and drop in pay, along with a paid suspension that effectively barred him from practicing law.

The Office of Disciplinary Counsel filed a report on March 23 which the Supreme Court upheld after oral arguments Wednesday. Justices Randy Holland, Karen Valihura and James Vaughn Jr. considered the matter.

In response to the Supreme Court’s ruling, spokesman Carl Kanefsky said, “As detailed in the Supreme Court’s order, the Department of Justice took disciplinary action with respect to this incident when it occurred last year.”

The Supreme Court noted that “considerable resources” were used to address the issue, including meetings, conference calls and hearings; Sussex County Superior Court Deputy Court Administrator Karen Taylor spent more than 50 hours on the case herself and took suspended bailiff Delbert Garrison’s Chief of Security responsibilities for five months.

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