Former Middletown fire Captain Greg Justice pleaded guilty Thursday in Butler County Common Pleas Court to a felony charge for submitting a fake doctor’s note to allow him to stay home rather that returning to duty. Justice, 52, of Springboro, is facing a maximum of 12 months in prison for forgery, a fifth-degree felony. He was charged with three counts of forgery and two counts of tampering with records. The remaining charges were dismissed.
Judge Jennifer McElfresh set sentencing for 1 p.m. Nov. 19. Justice, a 25-year veteran of the department, submitted his resignation in July just days after he was indicted.
Justice, who was placed on paid administrative leave June 30, forged his doctor’s signature on medical records.
Discrepancies on paperwork allegedly submitted by Justice raised suspicions with the city’s fire chief Paul Lolli.
Defense attorney Richard Goldberg filed a motion requesting a nationally recognized expert in ink analysis be permitted to examine the document in evidence. The judge had not ruled on that motion, but it is now moot in light of the plea.
However, the ink used on the document may not have been the most telltale portion of the evidence, according to prosecutors. The forged document shows the word orthopaedic is misspelled in the letterhead, which reads: “Orthopedic Institute of Dayton.”