15 were informed they did not pass the Kentucky bar exam after being previously told they did

A Kentucky lawmaker is outraged after a scoring error led to 15 people being incorrectly told they had passed the state bar exam.

A statement Friday from the Kentucky Office of Bar Admissions said it lamented what occurred in the early October remote exam.

“The scoring error occurred when an applicant identifier was entered into a database spreadsheet twice, causing a limited number of other applicants’ scores to be misaligned and assigned to the wrong applicant,” the office said.

Fifteen applicants who had been informed they passed the exam were told last Thursday that they did not pass and three who had been told they did not pass were told they actually had passed, the office said.

Officials said the mistake was not discovered prior to the release of the results and that all affected applicants were personally notified.

“I want to apologize to every applicant affected by the incorrect Kentucky Bar Exam results that were issued by my office earlier this week,” Office of Bar Admissions Executive Director Valetta Browne said. “I know that no apology can undo the anguish and disappointment that these bar examinees and their families have endured. We sincerely regret this mistake, which was the result of a data entry error.”

Officials have waived all application fees on future exams for the 15 aspiring lawyers.

“Heads have to roll for this. It is incredible and unacceptable,” Republican state House Rep. Jason Nemes tweeted last week. “If something like this had happened in a private business, those who made this mistake would be dismissed. So, it should be in public service.”

Nemes announced there will be a hearing to determine how the error happened and what is being done to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Browne told CNN a Kentucky Supreme Court liaison has spoken Nemes about the matter.