Lowe was a court employee from 2006 until 2009, during which he administered the court's electronic home detention program.
In 2009, after being confronted with allegations of misconduct, Lowe resigned. Upon his resignation, an audit found discrepancies in the money he collected, according to Heck’s office. The Fraud and Economic Crimes Unit of the prosecutor’s office was asked to investigate.
The investigation revealed that Lowe accepted more than $90,000 in supervision fees and would keep the money rather than turning it over to the probation department, according to Heck’s office, and Lowe would then manipulate the records to cover for his thefts.
Heck called the sentence appropriate, noting, “We should expect and demand that court employees will be honest and trustworthy. This defendant's acts undermined the credibility of the criminal justice system.”
Lowe was indicted on 16 third-degree felonies, all punishable by up to five years in prison: one count of theft in office of more than $5,000, 14 counts of tampering with government records, and one count of tampering with evidence. A grand jury also indicted him on two misdemeanors: soliciting or accepting improper compensation and dereliction of duty.
He resigned on Dec. 4, 2009, the same day officials signed a letter stating he would no longer be employed by the court. He had been on probation for a “history of lack of judgment” that included misuse of a city vehicle and issues related to nearly $4,800 he owed the city after receiving too much retroactive pay.
A letter in his file dated Aug. 17 states that another violation of the court’s personnel policy would result in his termination.
On Nov. 27, the probation office received an anonymous letter that stated Lowe had been driving a Mercedes from Bob Ross Buick Inc. with dealer’s plates for more than a month.
At that time, Lowe was monitoring the home detention of Robert Ross Jr., whose family owned the Centerville dealership and who worked there as a salesman.
In 2001, Lowe was arrested after an incident at his ex-girlfriend’s home in Huber Heights. Lowe had gotten into an altercation with the woman’s new boyfriend the previous night in the Oregon District.
When the ex-girlfriend refused to let him in the next morning, Lowe kicked in the door then got into another fight with the boyfriend.
Lowe, at the time a UD officer, had his service weapon with him. The boyfriend disarmed him and Lowe was arrested, according to court records.
Lowe was never indicted in the case, in part because the woman and her new boyfriend refused to cooperate. She told police that Lowe paid child support and she needed the money from him, according to court records. Lowe petitioned to have his arrest record sealed in 2007, stating that he wanted to become chief probation officer and he thought the record would hurt his efforts.
Common Pleas Judge Mary Katherine Huffman denied Lowe’s request.
Staff Writer Lou Grieco contributed to this report.