Voters heading to the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, to decide the next district judge for Pottawatomie and Lincoln counties face a starkly contentious choice between candidates Joseph Costa and Troy Officer, nondoc.com reported. The contest has drawn intense scrutiny after court documents surfaced detailing a 2020 investigation into Costa involving an accusation of rape by a former client.
Accuser Speaks Out After Learning of Judicial Campaign
The allegation against Costa came to light this month when nondoc.com received a copy of an Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation (OSBI) search warrant application filed in September 2020 by Special Agent Adam York. The accuser, Elizabeth Groves, a Jones native, agreed to speak publicly about the ordeal for the first time after learning of Costa’s judicial campaign.
According to York’s affidavit, Groves contacted Costa by text message on Aug. 30, 2020, a day after she was arrested in Harrah for actual physical control of a vehicle while intoxicated. Groves had hired Costa roughly two months prior to represent her in divorce proceedings. Costa instructed Groves to come to his office immediately. Once she arrived, Costa allegedly told her, I’m not your attorney right now,
before attempting to kiss her, groping her, and holding her on a couch while removing her clothes.
Groves stated she complied because she feared for her safety, thinking she might die or be beaten. After the encounter, Groves drove home, told her boyfriend, and was eventually taken to Saint Anthony’s Hospital in Shawnee before being transferred for a sexual assault nurse exam in Midwest City. She reported the assault to the Shawnee Police Department by phone.
On Sept. 9, 2020, Groves placed a recorded phone call to Costa from an OSBI office. Special Agent York reviewed the recording, noting that Costa confirmed having sex with Groves, mentioned he had been tested for STDs, and asked, What do you want me to do here? What are you wanting from me on this?
Groves replied, For it not to happen again,
to which Costa answered, OK, OK, OK,
while maintaining he believed the encounter was consensual.
That same day, court records show Costa filed to withdraw as Groves’ attorney in her divorce case, citing the completion of his contracted work. Six days later, Groves filed for a protective order in Oklahoma County, which lasted for seven months before expiring in May 2021.
Tulsa Prosecutors Decline to File Criminal Charges
Following the initial police report, former Pottawatomie County District Attorney Allen Grubb recused his office from the case. The matter was reassigned to Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler’s office. On Aug. 30, 2021, the OSBI presented its findings to Kunzweiler’s office, which formally declined to file criminal charges on April 6, 2022.
Tulsa County Assistant District Attorney Erick Grayless explained the decision, noting that while a search warrant requires probable cause, a criminal conviction requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt. Our office determined that there was insufficient evidence which would have allowed a conviction should Mr. Costa have been charged,
Grayless stated, adding that the balance between victim rights and the constitutional rights of the accused fell in Costa’s favor.
Grayless also confirmed that Kunzweiler’s office notified the Oklahoma Bar Association of the allegation. In an unusual sequence of events months after the criminal declination, Costa was hired as an assistant district attorney at the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office. Grayless noted that background checks at the time primarily relied on NCIC III background checks, which did not flag the prior OSBI investigation.
Costa Maintains Innocence After Investigation Clears Him
Costa maintains his innocence, emphasizing that the legal system functioned as intended. I’m innocent. No charges were filed. I was never arrested,
Costa said, pointing out that he has never been suspended by the bar association. There was an allegation. It was fully investigated. I was never arrested, never charged, never suspended because I’m innocent.
David McKenzie, an attorney who represented Costa during the investigation, defended his former client. So we have three government agencies which cleared him of all of that, and he was fully cooperative. Never invoked his right to remain silent,
McKenzie said, expressing disturbance over the resurfacing of the allegations late in the election cycle.
Attorney Robert Gifford also contacted nondoc.com to caution against publishing the uncharged allegations, writing that multiple agencies found the claims without merit. However, representatives from the investigating agencies clarified that the decision to decline charges was based on evidentiary thresholds rather than a determination that the allegations were entirely meritless.
Groves expressed dismay that the case did not proceed to trial and that Costa subsequently secured a position as a prosecutor. As voters in Pottawatomie and Lincoln counties prepare to cast their ballots on Nov. 3, 2026, the resurfaced records have brought the six-year-old allegations back to the forefront of the judicial race.
