Ex-court referee’s license suspended, but still refs soccer

July 27--TRAVERSE CITY -- Former 13th Circuit Court referee Dennis Mikko lost his job and recently lost his license to practice law, both thanks to his possession of nude images of teenage girls in his court house office.

The Michigan Attorney Discipline Board suspended Mikko's law license for one year for "grossly improper" conduct discovered in 2009 that the hearing panel described as "reprehensible." But Mikko is back on the field as a youth and high school soccer referee after a three-year suspension that ended in spring 2013.

He's also president of the Grand Traverse Area Soccer Officials Association, the group that assigns referees to work high school games.

Mikko said no one should have concerns about his ability to referee soccer games.

"I have not done anything to anyone nor would I," Mikko said. "I have not acted in an inappropriate way as a referee nor would I. What I did before, that was in the past."

Adam Gustafson, president of Traverse Bay Area Youth Soccer, said he didn't immediately know if Mikko worked any TBAYS games since his reinstatement, but said the organization has little ability to deny him games once the state association recertified him.

"I don't like it, but there isn't a whole lot we can do about it," Gustafson said. "As a parent does it make you uncomfortable? Sure. I have three daughters and all three play for TBAYS."

Mikko's book of incest

Mikko originally faced 10 felony counts of possession of child sexually abusive material, but a judge dismissed the charges in 2010, ruling the images didn't meet the standard of "sexually abusive."

But Mikko lost his family court referee job in large part because of certain pictures he possessed. Those photos were of up to a dozen local girls ages 13 to 16 who'd appeared in family court. Mikko amassed photos of those girls and other photos of naked teen girls and added them to four fiction books he created that were filled with stories of incest .

The books were made prior to Mikko's appointment as a family court referee in 1997, but he kept them and added the pictures of the local juvenile girls through at least 2003.

Mikko also used his court-issued computer to view pornography and engage in online conversations of a sexual nature with at least a dozen people. One of those conversations with a teenager led to the police investigation that discovered the photos, pornographic DVDs, and the incest book in a briefcase in his office.

"The misconduct in this case was grossly improper and involved misuse of (Mikko's) position as referee," wrote Ralph H. Houghton, chairman of the three-attorney hearing panel that suspended his law license. "The ... misconduct in the use of the young girls' photographs is reprehensible."

The grievance charges were filed against Mikko in 2010, but the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission waited for the criminal charges and possible federal charges to play out. Prosecutors appealed the initial criminal charges dismissal, but lost and eventually decided to drop the case.

The hearing panel made its decision on June 6, but the decision wasn't released to the public until almost a month later.

Mikko said he was "extremely remorseful" for his actions.

"It has significantly damaged my life, not only mine but my family's," Mikko said. "Not a day goes by that I don't wish I could turn the clock back and I could make different choices."

'Saying what he thinks he should say'

The hearing panel was not convinced of Mikko's remorse.

"Having heard and observed (Mikko's) hearing testimony, we conclude that (Mikko) does not fully appreciate the nature of his misconduct and is instead saying what he thinks he should say in the disciplinary process," Houghton wrote in the unanimous opinion.

Stephen Vella, senior associate counsel for the Michigan Attorney Grievance Commission, said he was satisfied with the one-year suspension. The grievance commission sought a minimum of 189 days to ensure Mikko has to petition for reinstatement of his law license and go through a hearing. He'll also have to go through a full physical and psychological review and submit to any treatment or counseling prescribed.

It's a process similar to what Mikko went through to regain his job as a soccer referee. He said both the Michigan High School Athletic Association and Michigan State Youth Soccer Association suspended him for about three years and he wasn't allowed to return to the field until the spring of 2013.

"I passed all of their risk management tests," Mikko said.

Mark Uyl, assistant director of the Michigan High School Athletic Association, said Mikko filed a grievance about his suspension. Officials investigated Mikko's criminal history and background, and following a series of meetings and hearings determined there was no legal reason to prevent him from registering as a referee.

Uyl said ultimately it is up to individual schools if they want to allow Mikko to officiate their games.

Patti Tibaldi, athletic director for Traverse City West Senior High School, said Mikko generally doesn't referee West games because of a family conflict, but he may have occasionally subbed when other officials weren't available.

"If MSHAA approves him, we are able to use him," Tibaldi said. "I don't believe he was found guilty about anything. If he's not found guilty and approved by our governing body, you would probably face ... discrimination charges if you denied him."

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