FRANKFORT, Ky. — Howard Keith Hall, the former Pike County attorney and currently suspended circuit court judge, is asking a federal court to dismiss his indictment for mail fraud and federal funds fraud.

His motion argues the charges are based on false premises — that part-time assistant county attorneys were required to work 100 hours per month and that he submitted false payroll certifications for Assistant County Attorney Michael Shane Hall,

Hall’s attorneys say no such hour requirement exists under Kentucky law, payroll forms accurately listed Hall as part-time, and Kentucky’s Court of Appeals has already ruled in a similar case that such conduct isn’t criminal. They also argue there was no material falsehood, federal law exempts bona fide salaries from prosecution, and Hall wasn’t an “agent” of the state agency controlling the funds.

There has been no response yet from the judge or prosecutors.