Gary Indiana Police Officer David B. Finley Arrested On Federal Drug And Weapon Charges

GARY, INDIANA – A Gary, Ind., police officer was arrested Tuesday morning and is facing prison time on federal drug and weapons charges.

David B. Finley, 31, was arrested in Hammond following a weeks-long investigation by the FBI and the Gary Police Department.

Finley has been involved in drug sales and even used his position as an officer to get a discount on a gun purchase for someone who didn’t qualify, the Post-Tribune reported, citing officials and sources.

“The vast majority of the men and women of the Gary Police Department are honest and hardworking people. This arrest should be a reminder to any officer who decides to cross the line and break the law that they will be arrested and prosecuted,” said Gary Chief Wade Ingram.

Finley is set to appear in court on Friday.

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Packs Of Savage Black Beasts Brawl – In Vigo County Indiana Courthouse, Spilling Onto Front Lawn

TERRE HAUTE, INDIANA -  Tensions ran high inside an Indiana courthouse Tuesday, after a hearing for a murder case.

The brawl at the Vigo County Courthouse followed a deadly shooting outside a bar in Terre Haute Friday.

The suspected shooter appeared via teleconference for this first hearing, and afterward his supporters began fighting with supporters for the victim.

The brawl started in the courthouse halls and spilled onto the front lawn before police broke it up.

The people involved could face charges.

“Let us do our job. Let the system work, and don’t try to take justice into your own hands, or otherwise we’re going to have to charge you and you’re going to be arrested and you’re going to be in jail, so…that’s the worst thing.. It makes it worse for everybody involved,” says Prosecutor Terry Modessit.

A 17-year-old girl was arrested on a warrant, after officers received reports that she hid a knife under a bush.

No one was hurt.

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Man Shoots Bystander And Indiana Police, Police Shoot Police Dog – 18 Law Enforcement Agencies And 4 SWAT Teams Lock Down Entire Town, But Man Gets Away And Kills Himself

PENDLETON, INDIANA – Kenneth James Bailey Jr. threatened violence against strangers and he delivered, shooting an innocent bystander dead and wounding two police officers before killing himself, authorities said.

The melee also resulted in the fatal shooting of a police dog by officers.

Police in Pendleton, Indiana, responded Thursday night to a report of shots fired. When they arrived, they were met with immediate and “overwhelming” gunfire from the suspect, according to a statement from police in nearby Anderson, Indiana.

The responding officer, Pendleton police Sgt. Shane Isaacs, “was ambushed by the suspect,” according to a Pendleton police statement.

Isaacs was shot multiple times in the legs by the suspect before finding cover from the array of bullets, Pendleton police said.

Anderson police Officer Marty Dulworth was also injured from the suspect’s gunfire, authorities said.

A total of 18 law enforcement agencies arrived at the scene. After the shootout, the suspect escaped, launching a six-hour manhunt.

The suspect’s body was eventually found a block away.

Police believe Bailey, 59, shot himself sometime after authorities locked down the town of Pendleton, preventing anyone from leaving the area.

Authorities believe Bailey was in the neighborhood to confront his estranged wife, Claudia, whom he had been separated from for about 10 months, Pendleton police said.

According to Madison County court documents obtained by CNN affiliate WRTV, Claudia Bailey filed paperwork Thursday requesting a restraining order against Kenneth Bailey. In it, she cited multiple threats, including a 2010 report in which Kenneth Bailey allegedly said he wanted to “blow everyone away” at the store where she worked.

Claudia Bailey also wrote that as recently as a few weeks ago, Kenneth Bailey threatened that if he ever found her with anyone else, “he’d just shoot us from a distance where we stand.”

“I’m scared he would. I’m looking over my shoulder,” she wrote.

A magistrate granted the restraining order Thursday, but it is not clear if Kenneth Bailey received the paperwork before Thursday night’s incident.

Shortly after the shootout, police discovered that the initial shots also struck nearby resident John Neal Shull Jr., who was sitting in his vehicle and had been blocked in traffic by the suspect’s vehicle. Shull was killed.

“There is an innocent victim, he’s a resident of the town, he’s been a friend of mine for years, and he is deceased,” Pendleton Police Chief Marc Farrer tearfully said in a press conference. “Innocent victim, totally in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

The suspect was armed with a pistol and large capacity magazine, an assault rifle, a flak jacket and gas masks, Farrer said.

“He came with an ill intent,” he said.

Four tactical SWAT teams were among the departments that responded to the scene. They helped move families from their homes in the early morning hours Friday as police set up a perimeter and searched for the suspect, Farrer said.

Hundreds of people gathered in a Pendleton church Friday night for a vigil in honor of Shull, the man shot dead in his car, CNN affiliate WXIN reported.

Earlier in the day, Shull’s wife Noelle told WXIN she is at a loss for answers.

“Why? What was the purpose in this man shooting my husband who was only trying to come home?”

John Shull was a business owner and a volunteer in the Kiwanis club, Pendleton police added.

The shootout also led to the death of an Anderson canine officer named Kilo.

“When Officer Dulworth was shot, Kilo, in the midst of the surrounding gunfire and reacting to the loss of his handler, mistook one of the officers as an aggressor and attacked him, biting him several times,” Anderson police said in a statement. “The officers found themselves faced with a confused K-9 and an armed suspect firing upon them.”

Police said officers were forced to shoot Kilo during the chaos.

Kilo followed his instinct to protect his handler to the very end, police said.

Kilo had been partnered with Dulworth since 2010. He was the first Anderson police dog to die in the line of duty.

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Former New Albany Indiana Police Officer Charles Bowman Arrested And Charged With Child Abuse And Neglect – Girlfriend’s 2 Year Old Had Skull Fracture, Bruises Everywhere, And A Black Eye

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY – A former New Albany, Ind. police officer has been arrested and charged with child abuse in Bullitt County, Ky.

Earlier this month, police arrested Charles Bowman. Police say he physically abused his girlfriend’s 2-year-old son.

“He was charged with child neglect and abuse. The mother was also charged with the same thing,” said Lt. Scotty McGaha, with the Bullitt County Sheriff’s Office.

Lt. McGaha described some of the child’s injuries. McGaha said, “The child had a skull fracture, had bruising, had a black eye, had bruising throughout the body.”

And police got involved after an employee at the child’s daycare noticed bruises and contacted child protective services.

“We have a check system in place for every child that enters our center,” said Lettisha Coleman, Director of Today’s Kids in Shephardsville. Coleman made the call to child protective services. She can’t comment on the case, but said they keep a daily journal for every child and that helps spot signs of abuse.

“We are trained to spot the abuse and know where things and places that aren’t suppose to be bruised,” said Coleman.

Meanwhile, police say medical experts have confirmed this was no accident.

The 2-year-old child is expected to make a full recovery. He has also been removed from the home and placed with relatives.

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Nutcase Indianapolis Indiana Police Officer Charged With Stalking After Four Hour Valentine’s Day Stand-Off – Violated Restraining Order 26 Times, Followed Victim In Police Vehicle, Threatened To Kill Himself

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – In the five months since he held fellow police at bay in a Northside park, Craig Ratcliff’s life has remained in upheaval.

He’s been on paid administrative leave since Valentine’s Day, when SWAT negotiators spent four hours convincing the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department patrolman to come down from a hill in Tarkington Park without harming himself. He underwent court-ordered therapy for psychological stress, and attempted suicide, court documents say, taking an overdose of pills on March 27.

Also during the past five months, Ratcliff has continued to stalk and harass a woman who has been the object of his obsession for years, according to Marion County prosecutors who charged him Thursday. He faces three felony counts of stalking, one misdemeanor count of battery and 26 misdemeanor counts of invasion of privacy.

Ratcliff, 54, was held Thursday in the Marion County Jail. He has been placed on unpaid leave, said IMPD Sgt. Linda Jackson, pending the outcome of the criminal proceedings and an internal investigation. Asked the amount of money Ratcliff received during his leave, Jackson said she would look into it; she had not provided a figure by late Thursday.

Investigators in February would not say what triggered the incident in Tarkington Park, but the affidavit released Thursday by the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office made clear that it pertained to Ratcliff’s relationship with a woman named Miguelina Reyes.

The woman, after breaking off a relationship with the officer, had sought and received a protective order against him, the document states. Ratcliff, it alleges, repeatedly violated the order — 26 times, in fact. The document indicates Ratcliff continually called and texted the woman and repeatedly sent her flowers against her wishes.

He also occasionally followed her to her workplace in his police vehicle, the document alleges.

On one occasion in early 2011, the document states, Ratcliff threatened to kill himself after Reyes declined a marriage proposal.

Ratcliff’s alleged offenses occurred between Sept. 1, 2011 — months before the standoff — and April 30, months after the standoff, according to the affidavit.

The battery charge stems from an incident on Jan. 8, 2011, at a local club when Ratcliff, angry that Reyes would not say she was “his lady,” allegedly grabbed the woman in a choke hold, causing bruises, the document states.

“In any case involving domestic violence allegations, we take those very seriously,” said David Rimstidt, Marion County’s chief deputy prosecutor. “We have a division that is entirely dedicated to cases involving domestic violence..?.?. Protecting the victims of domestic violence is our job one.”

The most serious charge, stalking with a deadly weapon, is a B felony that carries a sentence of six to 20 years, Rimstidt noted. The charge implies that Ratcliff stalked Reyes while armed with a deadly weapon — in this case, his IMPD service revolver.

On that count alone, investigators documented 48 occasions on which Ratcliff allegedly committed that offense.

Adding in the additional prison time possible under each charge, Ratcliff could face “a lengthy exposure to criminal sentence,” Rimstidt noted, though he said the officer’s lack of any previous criminal record might make a maximum sentence less likely.

The officer was married to another woman during parts of his relationship with Reyes, the document states, and the woman first broke off the relationship in April 2009 when she learned of Ratcliff’s marriage.

This year on Feb. 14, Ratcliff went to Reyes’ home, according to the affidavit, and tried to present her gifts and a ring. He asked her again to be his lady. Reyes again declined. A short time later, Ratcliff was still toting Valentine’s Day gifts while standing on the small hill in the park in full uniform, with a gun at his side and a cell phone to his ear. Traffic in the area was tied up for hours while a police negotiator, a pastor and family members tried to persuade him to give himself up.

Ratcliff surrendered that day at 1 p.m. and was placed in an ambulance that took him to Wishard Memorial Hospital for psychological evaluation and treatment. No shots were fired, and no one was injured. Police said Ratcliff was carrying a small box of candy, a greeting card and a stuffed Minnie Mouse.

A search of his home afterward led officers to one room that was empty, according to the affidavit released Thursday — empty except for a framed photo of Reyes, propped on the floor against a lighted angel statue.

Reyes told investigators Ratcliff had told her about the photo in the room, the affidavit said, though Reyes said she had never seen it. Ratcliff told her one day he and Reyes would stay in that room when she came to live with him. Reyes repeatedly told Ratcliff that day would never come, she told detectives, according to the affidavit.

Ratcliff’s bond was set at $250,000. No initial court hearing had been scheduled as of Thursday afternoon.

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Bogus Battery Charge Dropped After Coach’s Arrest By Fishers Indiana Police – Man Only Broke Up Catfight Between Two Players

FISHERS, INDIANA — An Indiana prosecutor said Thursday that criminal charges won’t be pursued against a Wisconsin girls basketball coach who was arrested after one of his teenage players told police he attacked her after a loss.

Fred Freeman, 47, of Hartford, Wis., had been jailed on a preliminary misdemeanor battery charge after the Monday scuffle, which involved a 17-year-old player from a traveling youth basketball team, at a sports complex in the Indianapolis suburb of Fishers.

Hamilton County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Jeff Wehmueller said the decision not to file charges against Freeman came after investigators talked with more witnesses.

“We had some independent witnesses who saw that this coach was breaking up a fight between two of the girls on the team,” Wehmueller told The Associated Press.

Dumbass Evansville Indiana Police Bring News Crew Along On Violent SWAT Attack On Wrong House That Catches Innocent 18 Year Old Woman Watching TV

EVANSVILLE, INDIANA – The long-standing, heavily documented militarization of even small-town American police forces was always going to create problems when it met anonymous Internet threats. And so it has, again—this time in Evansville, Indiana, where officers acted on some Topix postings threatening violence against local police. They then sent an entire SWAT unit to execute a search warrant on a local house, one in which the front door was open and an 18-year old woman sat inside watching TV.

The cops brought along TV cameras, inviting a local reporter to film the glorious operation. In the resulting video, you can watch the SWAT team, decked out in black bulletproof vests and helmets and carrying window and door smashers, creep slowly up to the house. At some point, they apparently “knock” and announce their presence—though not with the goal of getting anyone to come to the door. As the local police chief admitted later to the Evansville Courier & Press, the process is really just “designed to distract.” (SWAT does not need to wait for a response.)

Officers break the screen door and a window, tossing a flashbang into the house—which you can see explode in the video. A second flashbang gets tossed in for good measure a moment later. SWAT enters the house.

On the news that night, the reporter ends his piece by talking about how this is “an investigation that hits home for many of these brave officers.”

But the family in the home was released without any charges as police realized their mistake. Turns out the home had an open WiFi router, and the threats had been made by someone outside the house. Whoops.

So the cops did some more investigation and decided that the threats had come from a house on the same street. This time, apparently recognizing they had gone a little nuts on the first raid, the police department didn’t send a SWAT team at all. Despite believing that they now had the right location and that a threat-making bomber lurked within, they just sent officers up to the door.

“We did surveillance on the house, we knew that there were little kids there, so we decided we weren’t going to use the SWAT team,” the police chief told the paper after the second raid. “We did have one officer with a ram to hit the door in case they refused to open the door. That didn’t happen, so we didn’t need to use it.”

Their target appears to be a teenager who admits to the paper that he has a “smart mouth,” dislikes the cops, and owns a smartphone—but who denies using it to make the threats.

While the open WiFi issue has caused many problems over the last five years—especially in child porn cases—the FBI is becoming more savvy about how it executes search warrants. As we noted last December, a well-run FBI child porn investigation (also in Indiana) took rather obvious precautions before executing a warrant:

On April 30, two FBI special agents drove past the Carmel home and noted the existence of two WiFi networks reachable from the property. One used WEP encryption, the other had the more robust WPA2, but the key point from the FBI’s perspective was that neither network was unsecured. A search thus seemed much more likely to find its proper target.

Because most people aren’t stupid enough to make obvious threats from their own home Internet connection, the corollary principle also holds: if a home does have an open WiFi connection, investigators might want to ease away from the flashbangs-and-SWAT-team approach; the threat of getting it wrong is a real one.

But Evansville police aren’t backing down from their initial SWAT raid (read more about their later justification for using such force). And the targets of that raid aren’t pleased. As the owner of the first house told the paper, “The front door was open. It’s not like anyone was in there hiding. To bring a whole SWAT team seems a little excessive.”

The city will be paying to repair the damage it caused.

Not that all Evansville residents think the SWAT raid was in any way improper. Writing on the same Topix message boards where the initial threats emanated, one resident responded to critics: “They had a warrant. Sometimes warrants turn up nothing. Her home was repaired. On with your life now crusader!!! Lol”

“Noodle heads come on here thinking they are just big bad asses, threatening cops and their families,” wrote another, “then the cops come back and bitch slap them with SWAT teams and flash bang grenades. Awesome. Teach these fools a lesson and make examples out of them.”

But when all you have is an IP address, some non-trivial percentage of the time you teach a lesson to the wrong fools.

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Former Southport Indiana Police Officer Michael V. Richards Arrested And Charged With Beating His Girlfriend To Death

GREENWOOD, INDIANA - A former Southport police officer has been arrested in connection in the beating death of his girlfriend.

Michael V. Richards, 44, was arrested Thursday on preliminary charges of aggravated battery and involuntary manslaughter.

Richard’s live-in girlfriend, Michelle R. Andrews, 44, was found dead in her apartment June 2.

Autopsy results later confirmed that Andrews had died of blunt force trauma and that her death was a homicide, police said.

Richards was taken into custody without incident at Wheeler Mission in Indianapolis, where he was staying. He is being held at the Johnson County Jail on $28,000 bond.

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Rule Breaking Orlando Florida TSA Agent Dumped Man’s Grandfathers Ashes On The Floor And Started Laughing

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – A man’s attempt to bring the ashes of his grandfather home to Indianapolis ended with an angry scene in a Florida airport, with the ashes spilled on the terminal floor.

John Gross, a resident of Indianapolis’ south side, was leaving Florida with the remains of his grandfather — Mario Mark Marcaletti, a Sicilian immigrant who worked for the Penn Central Railroad in central Indiana — in a tightly sealed jar marked “Human Remains.”

Gross said he didn’t think he’d have a problem, until he ran into a TSA agent at the Orlando airport.

“They opened up my bag, and I told them, ‘Please, be careful. These are my grandpa’s ashes,’” Gross told RTV6′s Norman Cox. “She picked up the jar. She opened it up.

“I was told later on that she had no right to even open it, that they could have used other devices, like an X-ray machine. So she opened it up. She used her finger and was sifting through it. And then she accidentally spilled it.”

Gross says about a quarter to a third of the contents spilled on the floor, leaving him frantically trying to gather up as much as he could while anxious passengers waited behind him.

“She didn’t apologize. She started laughing. I was on my hands and knees picking up bone fragments. I couldn’t pick up all, everything that was lost. I mean, there was a long line behind me.”

TSA rules say a crematory container in carry-on baggage must pass through the X-ray machine at the security checkpoint.

But the agency’s own website says human remains are to be opened under, “no circumstances.”

“I want an apology,” said Gross. “I want an apology from TSA. I want an apology from the lady who opened the jar and laughed at me. I want them to help me understand where they get off treating people like this.”

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Edinburgh Indiana Police Officer Christopher McAllister Suspended After Arrest For Drunken Attack On Officers At Indanapolis Motor Speedway The Day Before Indy 500 Race

EDINBURGH, INDIANA – An Edinburgh police officer accused of attacking officers at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last month has been put on unpaid leave as a criminal investigation continues.

24-Hour News 8 news partner the Daily Journal reports the Edinburgh Town Council, which serves as town’s police merit commission, voted to place Officer Christopher McAllister, 44, on unpaid leave until the case is resolved in Marion County.

Because the town does not have a policy regarding what to do when an officer is charged with a crime, the newspaper said, Police Chief Pat Pankey allowed him to continue working and deferred the decision on what should be done to the Town Council.

Police said McAllister and his wife were creating a disturbance May 26 at IMS the day before the Indianapolis 500. When officers confronted them, McAllister attacked officers. He faces charges of battery, resisting law enforcement and public intoxication.

His wife, Shawntel, also resisted officers and even tried to jump on one of them. She was charged with resisting law enforcement and public intoxication.

Dustin Huddleston, the town’s attorney, told the newspaper the council would reconsider McAllister’s status once the criminal case was resolved.

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Huntington County Indiana Confinement Officer Walter McCann Arrested, Charged After Attacking Handcuffed Inmate

HUNTINGTON, INDIANA – Indiana State Police say they arrested a former Huntington County Confinement Officer Friday after a two month long investigation.

44-year-old Walter McCann was being investigated regarding allegations of excessive use of force against a handcuffed prisoner, according to police.

A release states that on April 17th, a male prisoner in the Huntington County Jail was handcuffed, placed into a holding cell for disciplinary reasons and was allegedly battered by a confinement officer.

Later in the week, the Sheriff of Huntington County contacted the ISP Criminal Investigation Division at the Fort Wayne Post to investigate the allegations.

The report was turned over to the Huntington County Prosecutor’s Office and the Huntington County Superior Court issued arrest warrants on the officer.

According to police, McCann is being charged with one count of Criminal Recklessness, a Class B Misdemeanor and one count of Battery, a Class B Misdemeanor.

The officer turned himself in to the Indiana State Police at the Huntington County Jail, where he was booked in under a $7,000 bond.

He has since posted bond and has been released.

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Three Teens In Police Explorer Program Injured In Drunk Driving Simulation In Jail Parking Lot While Under Supervision Of Elkhart County Indiana Deputy Sheriff Ptl. Bob Smith

ELKHART COUNTY, INDIANA – Three teens and a deputy were hospitalized during a drunk-driving simulation Monday evening in the parking lot of the Elkhart County Jail.

A group of teens in the Explorers program, which made up of kids looking for a career in law enforcement, were taking turns driving a modified golf cart wearing goggles that simulate drunk driving.

Around 7 p.m. investigators believe the 14-year-old driver took a turn too hard and then over-corrected, causing the cart to tip. A gust of wind then blew the cart on its side.

A 15-year-old passenger in the rear of the cart was airlifted to Memorial Hospital with numbness to his arms. Alex Whitehead, 18, was hospitalized with shoulder, arm and neck pain. The 14-year-old driver was hospitalized with head pain. Ptl. Bob Smith was later driven to Elkhart General with foot pain and minor cuts.

All were treated and released Monday evening.

“You don’t’ want to get those phone calls. I’ve been around long enough to know that stuff happens, accidents happen and that’s what this was and that’s all this was. Nobody was doing anything they shouldn’t have been doing, it’s just something that happened,” said Undersheriff Sean Holmes.

The cart, which belongs to Safe Kids Elkhart County, will be taken out of service during the investigation and for repair. The side mirror was broken, the passenger windshield was cracked and the canopy was damaged in the accident.

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Marion County Indiana Deputy Sheriff David Carrico Arrested And Charged After Brutally Beating Handcuffed Man In Unprovoked Attack And False Reporting – Caught On Video – Problem Department Has Seen 6 Deputies Quit Or Fired In 3 Months

MARION COUNTY, INDIANA – The story seemed plausible enough. At first.

A man being processed before he was taken to jail threatened to start a riot. A Marion County sheriff’s deputy said he had no choice but to take the man down. While they grappled, the man bit him on the thumb. The deputy was forced to throw a punch.

But investigators say Deputy David Carrico’s story isn’t true.

And they say they have the video to prove it.

On Friday, Carrico, 28, was fired and charged with felony official misconduct and two misdemeanors — battery and false reporting — in what investigators say is an unprovoked attack on Harry Hooks Jr, a 42-year-old Indianapolis man.

Hooks had been arrested May 20 on suspicion of driving away from a car crash and was taken to the Arrestee Processing Center near the jail Downtown.

Marion County Sheriff’s Col. Eva Talley-Sanders said surveillance video taken that night at the processing center shows Hooks’ hands were cuffed behind his back when Carrico pushed him up against a wall. She said Carrico then slammed Hooks onto the concrete floor, climbed on top of him and punched him in the head.

“It’s just horrible,” she said. He was “essentially beating him up.”

Carrico’s case is the latest example of a troubling trend involving Indianapolis-area law enforcement accused of wrongdoing.

In the past three months, six deputies, including Carrico, have resigned or been fired while under investigation for criminal misconduct or other wrongdoing.

And that’s just the Sheriff’s Department. The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department also has had its share of officer misconduct issues — including another that came to light Friday.

An IMPD officer, Thomas Bordenkecher, was charged Thursday with misdemeanor battery and intimidation for an off-duty altercation.

Meanwhile, sheriff’s investigators say it’s not entirely clear what triggered the incident at the processing center. They are not releasing a videotape of the incident, citing an ongoing investigation.

According to the affidavit, sheriff’s investigators say the video shows Hooks standing in the processing center along with five other arrestees when Carrico put him in a “hand hold” and took him to another area.

It was there, with the two alone, that investigators say the video shows Carrico grabbed Hooks by the neck and threw him on the concrete floor. With Hooks pinned to the floor, they say Carrico punched him in the head.

The affidavit says Hooks later was taken to the hospital where he had a “questionable nasal fracture,” cuts and a bruise on the right eye.

He later filed a complaint that led to the investigation.

The affidavit says the video shows that before Carrico pulled Hooks aside, “all the arrestees in the receiving room were compliant and no one appeared to be acting in a riotous manner.”

Though not mentioned in the affidavit, a press release issued earlier on Friday by the Sheriff’s Department said the video showed Hooks refusing to face in the right direction, and he can be heard calling deputies “racists” before Carrico took him to the other area.

Talley-Sanders said the Sheriff’s Department has asked federal authorities to determine whether Hooks’ civil rights were violated.

A woman who answered the door at Hooks’ address Friday afternoon declined to comment.

Police reports show that Carrico, who has been a deputy for seven years, has been involved in at least four other altercations with suspects in the past two years. In each case, according to the probable cause affidavits, Carrico claimed he was injured. And in each case, he claimed the inmate needed to be violently restrained.

Back in March, Carrico was involved in an incident with an inmate at the processing center who had already been charged with resisting law enforcement.

The arrestee swung his elbow at Carrico’s face, the police report alleges. As they grappled, Carrico hit his head on the wall or the metal door, making him dizzy. The suspect hit his head as well, the report states, as authorities were “placing him on the ground.”

In November 2010, Carrico got a “sore knee” while trying to handcuff a suspect who was picked up on an active warrant. The suspect kicked Carrico, the report states, and in the process the suspect “lost his balance” and “fell onto the parking lot.”

Sheriff’s officials said Friday they hadn’t gone back to look into the other incidents, but that Carrico may have acted appropriately.

“Most certainly, he could have been the victim,” Talley-Sanders said.

Carrico is the only recent sheriff’s deputy to face charges stemming from an on-duty incident. The rest happened off the clock.

Michael McKittrick, 29, was arrested May 26 after investigators say he fired a rifle in his apartment while drunk.

Douglas Tibbs, 33, resigned on May 22 — two days before he was charged with burglary and theft of prescription drugs.

Donald Prout, 32, resigned on March 28, about a week after being charged with theft and “ghost employment,” a charge stemming from allegations he worked for a private security firm while he was supposed to be serving warrants or attending training classes.

Ryan Radez, 29, was fired in February after being arrested and charged with public intoxication for an incident during pre-Super Bowl festivities.

Matthew Prestel, 27, was also fired in February after Child Protective Services removed his two young children from his home because of unsafe living conditions.

Natasha Fogleman, a 29-year-old civilian dispatcher, was fired in January after she was arrested and charged with trafficking with an inmate at the Wabash Valley Correctional Facility.

Sheriff’s investigators say that while troubling, the cases don’t point to a larger problem, either with training or screening for new hires.

They say some bad hires inevitably make it through when more than 1,000 employees, including 750 deputies, are on the payroll.

“I would put our screening and training up against any agency in the state,” said Maj. Scott Mellinger, the sheriff’s chief training officer and the former director of the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not minimizing the serious nature of the incidents. It not only makes us re-evaluate what we’re doing, it makes us angry and very, very disappointed.”

But at least one critic says the cases point to larger problems in recruiting qualified deputies.

Jim White, a 20-year state police veteran who now lectures at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, said the issue lies with how the deputies receive their law enforcement authority.

While deputies such as Carrico may be sworn law enforcement officers who can carry weapons, make arrests and conduct investigations, technically they aren’t “certified” to state standards like Indiana State Police or IMPD officers.

Instead, the “special deputies,” who primarily work in the jails and serve court papers, are deputized by the sheriff and trained at an in-house facility run by Mellinger.

White said many of the most ideal candidates trend toward police departments that train their officers to be certified.

The Sheriff’s Department, White said, is “not getting the candidates they used to get in the past.”

Sheriff’s training officers, however, insist that even though the deputies aren’t “certified,” that doesn’t mean training is insufficient.

Mellinger said deputies still are required to undergo 161/2 weeks of law enforcement training — the same amount cadets receive at his former academy. Plus, new deputies also receive a two-week course in jail procedures.

Besides, he points out, there also have been serious problems at IMPD, so it’s not like being “certified” guarantees appropriate conduct.

Earlier this month, IMPD settled for $1.5 million with the family of Eric Wells, who was killed in August 2010 when officer David Bisard drove — allegedly while drunk — into Wells’ motorcycle. In April, Police Chief Paul Ciesielski resigned after it was revealed officers mishandled a blood sample of Bisard’s for a second time.

And on Friday, a trial in which IMPD officer David Butler was accused of stealing money from Hispanic motorists ended in a hung jury.

Capt. Michael Hubbs, who oversees all criminal investigations for the sheriff, said given the problems other agencies have faced, it would be unfair to single out the sheriff’s office.

“These are deputy sheriffs,” Hubbs said. “They’re trusted just like any police officer.”

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Veteran Lake County Indiana Deputy Sheriff Gary Pilipovich Arrested On Misdemeanor And Felony Drug Charges

VALPARAISO, INDIANA - A northwestern Indiana sheriff’s deputy has been arrested on drug charges, including felony counts of possessing cocaine, possessing a syringe and possessing a controlled substance.

Twenty-nine-year-old Lake County sheriff’s Deputy Gary Pilipovich was charged in neighboring Porter County, where he lives. Pilipovich also was charged with misdemeanor possessing marijuana and paraphernalia.

The Times of Munster reports the investigation into Pilipovich began after an officer assisting with an eviction at an apartment said he saw bag of marijuana in plain sight. Police said they found cocaine in a closet and marijuana in a Lake County sheriff’s bag.

Sheriff John Buncich says the eight-year veteran deputy has been suspended from his job. Pilipovich has bonded out of jail. It was not immediately known if Pilipovich had hired an attorney.

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Indianapolis Indiana Police Officer Thomas Bordenkecher Arresed, Suspended, And Charged With Battery And Intimidation

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – An Indianapolis Metro Police Officer was arrested on charges of battery and intimidation, investigators said.

Officer Thomas Bordenkecher was accused Thursday in an unspecified off-duty incident.

Investigators did not provide details about the incident, only that the result of the investigation prompted Bordenkecher’s arrest and preliminary misdemeanor charges.

Bordenkecher has been employed with IMPD since April 1991, and is currently on administrative leave pending the outcome of the charges.

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Indiana Cops Upset When Table Is Leveled – Residents Can Use Deadly Force Against Law Enforcement Officers And Public Servants Who Unlawfully Enter Their Homes – Based On Recent Bad Case Decision And Unlawful Entry By Police Officers

INDIANA – Police officers in Indiana are upset over a new law allowing residents to use deadly force against public servants, including law enforcement officers, who unlawfully enter their homes. It was signed by Republican Governor Mitch Daniels in March.

The first of its kind in the United States, the law was adopted after the state Supreme Court went too far in one of its rulings last year, according to supporters. The case in question involved a man who assaulted an officer during a domestic violence call. The court ruled that there was “no right to reasonably resist unlawful entry by police officers.”

The National Rifle Association lobbied for the new law, arguing that the court decision had legalized police to commit unjustified entries.

Tim Downs, president of the Indiana State Fraternal Order of Police, which opposed the legislation, said the law could open the way for people who are under the influence or emotionally distressed to attack officers in their homes.

“It’s just a recipe for disaster,” Downs told Bloomberg. “It just puts a bounty on our heads.”

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Edinburgh Indiana Police Officer Christopher McAllister Still On Duty After He And His Wife’s Arrest For Assaulting Police Officers At Indianapolis Motor Speedway

EDINBURGH, INDIANA – The Edinburgh Police Officer accused of attacking several officers at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway the day before the Indianapolis 500 is still on the job. We spoke to Edinburgh Police Chief Patrick Pankey Monday afternoon to learn the status of officer Christopher McAllister, who along with his wife Shawntel McAllister, was arrested on May 26th in the 2100 block of Georgetown Road in Indianapolis.

According to reports, officers were called to the location over a loud disturbance between the two. When the officer approached, McAllister allegedly slammed his beer bottle into the ground, yelled at and then grabbed the officer. Additional officers were called to the scene, but McAllister allegedly continued to resist, chest bumping one officer and striking him with an elbow. Reports indicated that Shawntel McAllister jumped on the back of an officer and tried to free her husband.

Christopher McAllister is facing charges of “Battery”, “Resisting Law Enforcement” and “Public Intoxication.” Shawntel McAllister is facing charges of “Resisting Law Enforcement” and “Public Intoxication.”

Chief Pankey says he will make a decision on how to proceed with McAllister and any potential punishment after he appears in court. No court date has been set at this time.

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Marion County Indiana Deputy Sheriff Michael McKittrick Arrested, Suspended, And Charged After Shooting High Power Rifle In His Apartment

MARION COUNTY, INDIANA – Marion County Deputy Michael McKittrick was arrested by Marion County Criminal Investigators early Saturday morning on a preliminary charges of criminal recklessness.

Investigators were called to the deputy’s apartment following the discharge of his personal high-powered rifle. The single round did not injury anyone but did travel through other apartments.

McKittrick, who appeared to be intoxicated, told investigators that he discharged the weapon because he thought there was an intruder in his apartment.

He was taken to Wishard Memorial Hospital for blood tests prior to his being taken to the Arrestee Processing Center.

Deputy McKittrick, is assigned to the Jail Division, and has been placed on administrative leave pending resolution of the Internal Affairs investigation and the criminal proceedings.

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Fired Logansport Indiana Police Officer Carlos Paul Leal Arrested And Charged With Two Counts Of Felony Theft

LOGANSPORT, INDIANA - A former north-central Indiana police officer has been arrested on theft charges alleging that he misused a city-issued gas card and made a questionable claim for compensation.

Cass County Sheriff Randy Pryor tells the Pharos-Tribune that Carlos Paul Leal was arrested Friday at the Cass County Jail after surrendering to face two felony theft charges. The 32-year-old Leal later posted bond and was released.

County Prosecutor Kevin Enyeart says the former Logansport police officer faces one theft charge for allegedly misusing a city-issued gas card. That investigation led to the Delphi man’s firing last month from the police department.

In the second case, he’s accused of filing questionable paperwork seeking compensation for allegedly working two days during an law enforcement campaign targeting drunken drivers.

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Marion County Indiana Deputy Sheriff John M. Benton Arrested, Charged After Sending Pornographic Photos And Videos Of Himself To Waitresses

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – Officers arrested a Marion County Sheriff’s deputy after they say he sent pornographic photos and videos of himself to waitresses.

John M. Benton, 26, was arrested Tuesday on four counts of obscene performance, all Class A misdemeanors.

Marion County Sheriff’s Office officials say the arrest stemmed from a week-long investigation. Benton is accused of sending four pornographic photos and two pornographic videos of his genitalia to female waitresses from Indianapolis establishments.

Police say Benton admitted them that he took the photos and pictures and sent them to the two women, but he justified it, saying the two girls were flirting with him.

“The investigation and the photos speaks for itself, and with the arrest, there is no evidence to present that would suggest this is anything else than what it is,” said Captain Michael Hubbs with Marion County Sheriff’s Office.

Police say Benton knew the women from working part-time at the establishments.

According to court documents, the former deputy admits he’s sent a number of other women nude photos – but he’s never faced criminal charges for doing so.

Police say he told detectives that some of the photos of his private parts were taken while he was in uniform working inside the Marion City County Building.

Sheriff John R. Layton terminated Benton after reviewing the case.

Benton faces a sentence of one year for each charge, if he’s convicted.

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Pedophile Former “Top” FBI Agent Donald Sachtleben Arrested, Charged With Child Pornography – Currently Visiting Professor At Oklahoma State University, But All References To Him Suddenly Disappeared From Their Web Site

CARMEL, INDIANA – A former supervisory FBI agent has been arrested and jailed on child pornography charges.

Donald Sachtleben was taken into custody and charged Monday after a nationwide undercover investigation of illegal child porn images traded over the Internet.

The 54-year-old resident of Carmel, Indiana, has pleaded not guilty and has a detention hearing in federal court Wednesday.

A federal complaint alleges 30 graphic images and video were found on Sachtleben’s laptop computer late last week when FBI agents searched his home, about 23 miles north of Indianapolis.

The arrest was a result a months-long probe, said the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Joseph Hogsett.

“The mission of our Project Safe Childhood initiative is to investigate and prosecute anyone found to (be) engaged in the sexual exploitation of children,” Hogsett said in a news release. “No matter who you are, you will be brought to justice if you are found guilty of such criminal behavior.”

Sachtleben is currently an Oklahoma State University visiting professor, according to his online resume. He is director of training at the school’s Center for Improvised Explosives, but all references to his work have now been removed from the university’s website. There was no indication from the school as to whether it had suspended him. Calls to the university and his Indianapolis attorneys were not immediately returned.

He had been an FBI special agent from 1983 to 2008, serving as a bomb technician. He worked on the Oklahoma City bombing and Unabomber investigations, according to his university biography.

A separate LinkedIn profile filled out by Sachtleben says he is an “accomplished investigator with more than 25 years of experience in FBI major case management, counter terrorism investigations, bombing prevention, post blast investigations and public speaking.”

According to the criminal complaint, a federal-state joint task force had been investigating an Illinois man allegedly trading child porn images as far back as September 2010. That suspect was arrested in January, and a search of his computer reportedly led to Sachtleben, who was using the e-mail name pedodave69.

According to the affidavit, an e-mail from that account was sent to the Illinois suspect last fall, along with nine images of child porn. “Saw your profile on (a file sharing network). Hope you like these and can send me some of ours (sic). I have even better ones if you like.” Prosecutors say Sachtleben sent that e-mail.

Sachtleben’s wife was interviewed by agents during the execution of the search warrant and denied any involvement with child porn. She was not taken into custody.

FBI officials in Washington had no comment on the arrest.

If convicted, Sachtleben would face up to 20 years in prison on the charge of distribution of child porn, and an additional 10 years for possession.

The Justice Department’s Project Safe Childhood initiative was launched in 2006, leading to what federal officials call a more than 40% increase in the number of cases investigated. The project’s website says 2,700 indictments were filed last year alone.

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Hancock County Indiana Coroner Tamara Vangundy Arrested After Driving Drunk To Death Investigation Scene

GREENFIELD, INDIANA – The Hancock County coroner is in jail facing drunken driving charges.

Tamara Vangundy was arrested early Thursday morning after she showed up on a death investigation in New Palestine apparently drunk.

A breathalyzer was administered around 12:20 Thursday morning and she tested twice the legal limit at .16, police officials say. Vangundy was taken to the Hancock County Jail.

Vangundy told police she had 18 ounces of wine — or about three-quarters of a typical bottle of wine — during a one hour period at a friend’s house. She said she stopped drinking at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday, according to the probable cause affidavit.

The coroner was stumbling and swaying at the scene, court documents say. She drove her personal vehicle to the death scene, because she said she thought she might be too intoxicated to drive the county-owned van.

Court documents indicate that Vangundy is facing an operating while intoxicated charge and a charge of official misconduct.

In Tuesday’s primary election, Vangundy is running unopposed for re-election. She’s the half sister of Greenfield Police Chief John Jester.

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Indianapolis Indiana Police Chief Paul Ciesielski Steps Down After Evidence Screw Up In Case Of Officer Who Killed One And Injured Others In Drunken Patrol Car Wreck

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – Who could have imagined that one blood sample would cause so much trouble?

It has raised suspicion about the competence of the city’s police department. It has raised concerns about whether justice can be served. And now — now that this blood sample has been mishandled yet again — it has toppled the chief of police.

Paul Ciesielski resigned Tuesday as chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, the same day that Mayor Greg Ballard announced that blood drawn from suspended officer David Bisard had been improperly moved and possibly ruined.

Bisard is awaiting trial in the crash that killed one motorcyclist and injured two others on Aug. 6, 2010. A blood draw that was botched by IMPD had indicated Bisard’s blood-alcohol level was 0.19 when his patrol car hit the motorcycles, which would be well above Indiana’s 0.08 legal threshhold for driving drunk.

“At best, this matter shows gross incompetence; at worst, possible criminal intent,” Ballard said at a news conference with Indianapolis Public Safety Director Frank Straub. “I want to express how angry and disgusted I am that this happened.”

The FBI will probe why — despite a judge’s explicit instructions to preserve Bisard’s blood samples for further testing — a second vial was moved from a refrigerated compartment in a property room in the City-County Building to an unrefrigerated area of a backup property room at the IMPD Training Academy, 10th Street and Post Road.

Straub said Ciesielski will remain a captain with the department, but his assignment hasn’t been determined yet.

In addition to the resignation of Ciesielski, who did not return a message left on his cellphone Tuesday, IMPD Deputy Chief of Professional Standards Valerie Cunningham was placed on paid suspension.

Lt. Paula Irwin, who was in charge of the property room, and Teresa Brockbrader, a civilian employee, also have been placed on paid administrative leave.

Deputy Director for Community Affairs Rick Hite was appointed acting chief.

Ballard and Straub stopped short of saying the blood was intentionally tampered with, but its mishandling was met with disbelief by several observers, including Aaron Wells, whose 30-year-old son, Eric Wells, was killed in the crash.

“All of the so-called blunders at the beginning of this case, and a year and a half later to still have them butchering evidence,” Wells said, “it’s absolutely devastating to all of us.”

Following the improper blood draw after the crash, this is now the second time Bisard’s blood has been improperly cared for.

“It is laughable,” said Fran Watson, clinical professor of law at Indiana University’s Robert H. McKinney School of Law in Indianapolis. “And not in a good way. In a you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me way. It’s the Police Department’s job to maintain evidence in a form that it’s admissible.”

Prosecutor Terry Curry said his office discovered that Bisard’s blood had been moved last week when Hawkins granted prosecutors’ request to test the second vial.

At first, Curry said, they weren’t sure whether it simply had been moved to another refrigerated area or whether it was unrefrigerated. Curry said his office confirmed Monday that the blood wasn’t refrigerated.

Still, Curry said the mishandling likely won’t affect prosecutors’ case against Bisard. Storing the blood in an unrefrigerated area means the alcohol content might be compromised, Curry said, but the DNA should still be intact. Testing the second vial was a precaution, he said, and there’s enough blood in the first vial to have an independent lab retest it.

“We are currently working with an independent lab to clarify the implications of testing the blood from the second vial,” Curry said.

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Crazed Indiana Court Says Cops Can Illegally Invade Anyones Home At Any Time And Residents Have No Right To Resist

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – Overturning a common law dating back to the English Magna Carta of 1215, the Indiana Supreme Court ruled Thursday that Hoosiers have no right to resist unlawful police entry into their homes.

In a 3-2 decision, Justice Steven David writing for the court said if a police officer wants to enter a home for any reason or no reason at all, a homeowner cannot do anything to block the officer’s entry.

“We believe … a right to resist an unlawful police entry into a home is against public policy and is incompatible with modern Fourth Amendment jurisprudence,” David said. “We also find that allowing resistance unnecessarily escalates the level of violence and therefore the risk of injuries to all parties involved without preventing the arrest.”

David said a person arrested following an unlawful entry by police still can be released on bail and has plenty of opportunities to protest the illegal entry through the court system.

The court’s decision stems from a Vanderburgh County case in which police were called to investigate a husband and wife arguing outside their apartment.

When the couple went back inside their apartment, the husband told police they were not needed and blocked the doorway so they could not enter. When an officer entered anyway, the husband shoved the officer against a wall. A second officer then used a stun gun on the husband and arrested him.

Professor Ivan Bodensteiner, of Valparaiso University School of Law, said the court’s decision is consistent with the idea of preventing violence.

“It’s not surprising that they would say there’s no right to beat the hell out of the officer,” Bodensteiner said. “(The court is saying) we would rather opt on the side of saying if the police act wrongfully in entering your house your remedy is under law, to bring a civil action against the officer.”

Justice Robert Rucker, a Gary native, and Justice Brent Dickson, a Hobart native, dissented from the ruling, saying the court’s decision runs afoul of the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

“In my view the majority sweeps with far too broad a brush by essentially telling Indiana citizens that government agents may now enter their homes illegally — that is, without the necessity of a warrant, consent or exigent circumstances,” Rucker said. “I disagree.”

Rucker and Dickson suggested if the court had limited its permission for police entry to domestic violence situations they would have supported the ruling.

But Dickson said, “The wholesale abrogation of the historic right of a person to reasonably resist unlawful police entry into his dwelling is unwarranted and unnecessarily broad.”

This is the second major Indiana Supreme Court ruling this week involving police entry into a home.

On Tuesday, the court said police serving a warrant may enter a home without knocking if officers decide circumstances justify it. Prior to that ruling, police serving a warrant would have to obtain a judge’s permission to enter without knocking.

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Niles Indiana Police Officer Ivery Cross Arraigned – Charged With Sexually Assaulting Teen Inmate – Family Shows Up In Court And Causes A Scene

NILES, INDIANA — It was a tumultuous scene Thursday outside Berrien County Trial Court in Niles where supporters and family members of Ivery Cross, a Niles police officer accused of the sexual assault of a 19-year-old inmate in the holding facility at the Niles Law Enforcement Complex, gathered following Cross’s arraignment.

Mary Cross, the officer’s mother and one of the few family members who was willing to identify herself, shouted several times that her son is innocent as Mark Coulston, the Trial Court bailiff, attempted to move the angry group of roughly 40 people outside into the parking lot.

“I don’t believe it,’’ she said, apparently referring to the charges authorized Wednesday against her son, who’s black. “This is a prejudiced town and a prejudiced court.’’

Others took the media to task for their coverage of the high-profile case, yelling at cameramen and other media representatives that they’d “already lynched’’ Cross. One woman who seemed to support that position leveled criticism as well at the county’s criminal justice system, shouting that her mother had been raped several years ago and that the perpetrator had been allowed to go free.

That woman, too, refused to identify herself, as did yet another woman who had to be restrained as she shouted at TV cameramen and reporters.

In court, Cross, 25, a life-long Niles resident and a member of the city’s police department for a little more than two years, hugged family members and supporters prior to his appearance before Schofield. He was represented by R. McKinley Elliott, who told Schofield he was filling in for another attorney who had a conflict.

Neither Elliott nor Steve Pierangeli, a Berrien assistant prosecutor, asked Schofield to recuse himself based on the judge’s previous dealings with Cross in his role as a police officer. Neither did Elliott object when Pierangeli asked the judge to order Cross to turn over his uniform, weapons and other police equipment, to have no contact with the Niles schools where he had worked as an assistant football coach and to impose a curfew.

But Elliott did object when Pierangeli asked that Cross’ $25,000 bond, which he posted Saturday, be increased to $250,000. Pierangeli asked for the higher bond based on the “serious nature’’ of the charges — 1st degree criminal sexual conduct (digital penetration), three counts of 2nd degree criminal sexual conduct (contact with genitals and a buttock) and one count of misconduct of office. The 1st degree charge is punishable by a maximum of life in prison.

Despite Elliott’s objections, Schofield agreed to the $250,000 bond but said Cross could post $100,000 should he submit to home tether. One of Cross’ supporters shouted to the media in the parking lot that they’d have the money raised by this morning.

Cross is scheduled to have a pre-exam conference on Thursday. His preliminary exam is set for April 12.

Suspended by the department without pay, Cross stands accused of assaulting the teenager in a bathroom at the LEC’s holding facility on March 17. The teen had been picked up on a charge of possession of marijuana.

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Greenwood Indiana Police Chief Joe Pitcher Fired For Bad Judgement, Assistant Chief Dave Mertz Quits

GREENWOOD, INDIANA – There’s been a major shakeup in the Greenwood Police Department.

Greenwood Mayor Charles Henderson announced Friday that he fired the police chief and accepted the resignation of the assistant chief.

Chief Joe Pitcher was removed as Greenwood Police chief by Mayor Henderson. Assistant Chief Dave Mertz resigned.

The mayor says the firing follows the mishandling of another officer’s disciplinary case.

Mayor Henderson said Joe Pitcher used bad judgment with an officer’s case last year, was uncooperative with the city’s police merit board and most recently defied a direct order from the mayor.

The case last year involved Greenwood Officer Nick Dine, who was accused of arguing with residents and officers outside a Greenwood restaurant. That night, Pitcher reportedly invited Dine to his home and offered him a drink.

Because of that, Mayor Henderson asked Pitcher to stay out of the investigation. But the mayor says he still got involved.

Dine was supposed to have a hearing with the police merit board this week, but Mayor Henderson says instead Chief Pitcher worked out a deal for internal discipline and that the chief never showed up to the hearing. Henderson says that was the last straw and led to the firing.

There have been several issues with Greenwood Police officers recently, but the mayor says this is not a police department in chaos.

“I don’t think the department that serves the public is in chaos because the men and women are really quality people for the most part and they’re doing a good job. Turmoil was at the top and I’ve taken that out and now I’ve gotta put somebody in there to get it back on track,” said the mayor.

The mayor has not named a replacement for Chief Pitcher.

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Crazed Marion County Indiana Judge S.K. Reid Orders Newspaper To Disclose Identity Of Anonymous Web Commenters

MARION COUNTY, INDIANA – A Marion County judge has ruled, for the first time in Indiana, that news media outlets can be ordered by the court to reveal identifying information about posters to their online forums.

In rulings this week and last week, Marion Superior Court Judge S.K. Reid became the first judge in Indiana to rule on whether the state journalism shield law protects media outlets from being forced to disclose names of anonymous posters on their websites or other identifying information about those posters, said Kevin Betz, an attorney for Jeffrey Miller, former chief executive of Junior Achievement of Central Indiana.

The rulings came in a defamation lawsuit Miller filed last year. He is seeking to broaden the list of defendants in his case to include people who criticized him anonymously last year on websites run by The Indianapolis Star, Indianapolis Business Journal and WRTV (Channel 6).

The case is among a growing number of defamation claims nationally that target anonymous Internet posters to websites operated by news media and other owners.

“We are seeing more and more defamation lawsuits being filed, that’s clear,” said David Hudson, a First Amendment scholar at the First Amendment Center, affiliated with Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn. Hudson said the public should be concerned if anonymous comments on public websites begin drying up because of the fear of lawsuits. “If this happens, then people will be less likely to comment” on public issues, he said.

All three Indianapolis media outlets fought the subpoenas served on them to turn over identifying information about posters to their sites.

The judge ruled that The Star and IBJ must turn over the identifying information, which typically tells a poster’s Internet protocol address or Internet provider. Using that, an attorney can subpoena the Internet provider for the poster’s real name.

The Star had fought the disclosure, saying in its 15-page motion that the shield law protects it from being forced to disclose names of anonymous posters on its IndyStar.com website, as does the Constitution and its guarantees of freedom of speech.

“Our practice is not to reveal the names” of people who post anonymously on The Star’s website, said Star Editor and Vice President Dennis Ryerson. “We’ve long had a practice of protecting sources at all levels.”

Ryerson wouldn’t comment on the judge’s ruling, except to say, “We now are reviewing our legal options.”

The judge’s ruling on whether WRTV also must turn over information about its posters is expected this week.

The IBJ has already turned over the information Miller sought, Betz said.

The posters identified include Kelsey Hanlon, described as a former staffer at Junior Achievement; James Leagre, who is called a friend of Junior Achievement’s current chief executive; and Dave Wilson, vice president of corporate sponsorship for the 500 Festival Associates.

500 Festival Associates also was added as a defendant in the defamation claim, on the grounds that the defamatory comments supposedly traced to Wilson were sent on one of its computers.

Miller, whose wife, Cynthia, is a co-plaintiff in the case, initially sued Jennifer Burk, who is the current chief executive of Junior Achievement of Central Indiana; Brian Payne, who is president of Central Indiana Community Foundation; and both of their organizations.

The amended complaint adds as many as nine other people. They are listed in the lawsuit as “John Does.”

Betz said he doesn’t see the judge’s recent rulings as weakening the state’s shield law, which gives broad protections to news reporters from having to disclose names of sources who provide information used in news stories.

“This is not an assault on the shield law,” Betz said. “In fact, it is well within the bounds of the traditional terms of the shield law. I don’t think the media should be interested . . . in protecting the identities of cyberbullies. I don’t think these people are advancing any cause of democracy or purposeful free speech.

“All it is is cyberbullying. And these kind of individuals need to understand there is accountability for that kind of behavior.”

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Indiana Deputy Attorney General Jeff Cox Fired After Comment About Using “Live Ammunition” Against Protesters

INDIANA – Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller has dismissed a deputy, Jeff Cox, for posting inappropriate comments online critical of the labor union protesters in Wisconsin.

Cox sent out a message on his Twitter account saying that police should “use live ammunition” against the protesters.

A staffer for the political news site Mother Jones sent a message back to the person, who was then only known by his online account name. Cox messaged back that the demonstrators were “political enemies” and “thugs.”

“You’re damned right I advocate deadly force,” Cox wrote to the Mother Jones staffer.

Earlier today, the attorney general’s office said it was investigating whether Cox had sent the tweet and said it was a serious matter.

This afternoon, the office issued a statement saying Cox was no longer employed there. The office said it had conducted “a thorough and expeditious review” after it learned of the Mother Jones article.

“Civility and courtesy toward all members of the public are very important to the Indiana Attorney General’s office. We respect individual’s First Amendment right to express their personal views on private online forums, but as public servants we are held by the public to a higher standard, and we should strive for civility,” the office said in a statement.

Cox told WRTV he realizes the tweet wasn’t a good idea, but he doesn’t think public employees should lose their free speech rights.

Cox is the son of WRTV reporter Norman Cox.

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Hero Charged After Pumching TSA Agent In Indianapolis Indiana Airport

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – A Connecticut man has been arrested after exchanging words and punching a TSA screener at a security checkpoint at Indianapolis International Airport.

According to a report from airport police, John A. Christina, 51, Simsbury, Conn., was charged with battery as a misdemeanor in connection with the incident about 2:50 p.m. Tuesday at the Concourse B checkpoint.

Christina, who could not be reached for comment today, was released from jail on $150 bond and scheduled in Marion Superior Court 10 on Dec. 13.

Jim Fotenos, spokesman for the Transportation Security Agency, said in an airport police report, “Our transportation security officers work on the front lines to protect the nation from a terrorist attack and physical violence against them is shameful. TSA will work with local authorities to see that appropriate action is taken.”

Airport officials declined further comment while the incident is under investigation.

Similar security checkpoint incidents at other U.S. airports have drawn concern and protests the past two weeks since TSA instituted search and pat-down procedures that some fliers believe are too personal and intrusive.

It is not completely clear from the police report why Christina punched TSA agent Gregory J. Hutman, 28, Vandalia, Ohio.

The report does not indicate that Christina refused to be screened before entering the concourse and boarding an airplane. He had already stood and been scanned in a full-body advanced imaging machine before the incident.

After he stepped from the machine, the men talked, but full details of the exchange are not in the police report.

But it indicates that Christina said he has a history of medical issues, including two metal implants, a colostomy bag and a fused right wrist.

According to the report, as Christina stepped from the scanner, he asked Hutman a question, though the report doesn’t provide details.

Hutman responded, according to the report, “He’s not from the Indianapolis airport and was not familiar with the process you are talking about.” The report doesn’t explain further.

“After the conversation, Christina punched him with his right closed fist in the middle of his chest,” the report said.

When Hutman asked why Christina hit him, Christina said, “I was only kidding with you,” according to the report.

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Indiana Adds Armed Guards To Unemployment Officers As Residents 99 Week Benefits Expire

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — Armed security guards will be on hand at 36 unemployment offices around Indiana in what state officials said is a step to improve safety and make branch security more consistent.

No specific incidents prompted the action, Department of Workforce Development spokesman Marc Lotter told 6News’ Norman Cox.

Lotter said the agency is merely being cautious with the approach of an early-December deadline when thousands of Indiana residents could see their unemployment benefits end after exhausting the maximum 99 weeks provided through multiple federal extension periods.

“Given the upcoming expiration of the federal extensions and the increased stress on some of the unemployed, we thought added security would provide an extra level of protection for our employees and clients,” he said.

Some offices have had guards for nearly two years but those guards were hired on a regional basis, meaning some offices had armed guards while others did not, Lotter said.

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The cost of the armed guards varies dramatically around the state. Lotter said the agency is trying to be more consistent and that it plans to employ armed guards in all 36 offices where unemployment insurance benefits are handled.

The overall cost for the security is $1 million, paid for with federal funds designated for administration of the unemployment system, Lotter said.

Other agency offices that provide job training or are not full-service branches will continue to have unarmed guards.

Lotter said state employees in the affected offices have also recently gone through stress-management training in which they learn how to respond appropriately to angry clients.

“This is a stressful time for people in the economy,” he said. “That’s why we’re not only taking this step (of hiring guards), but we’re also increasing our training for our staff to be able to help people as they’re trying to cope with these changes.”

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Indiana Bureau Of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Andy Miller Quits After Exposing Himself, Masturbating, And Asking A Police Officer To Help Him In A Public Bathroom

Andy Miller has resigned as commissioner of the Bureau of Motor Vehicles, one day after his arrest at a Downtown public restroom on a charge of public indecency.

Gov. Mitch Daniels said in a statement that “if things are as reported, the law must be respected, but either way this is just an extremely sad situation.”

Daniels named R. Scott Waddell, the BMV’s chief of staff, to succeed Miller.

Miller, a 40-year-old Carmel father of three, was arrested Wednesday after police say he exposed himself, masturbated in front of an undercover officer and asked that officer to touch his genitals in the men’s bathroom at Claypool Court. That Downtown facility has been the site of other public indecency arrests, and is only a short tunnel walk away from the Statehouse and the Indiana Government Center building where Miller worked.

In his statement, Daniels praised Miller’s service.

“Andy Miller has been an exceptional public servant. Indiana farmers, flood victims, motorists and taxpayers in general all have benefited from his hard work and leadership in three important capacities,” Daniels said.

Those include serving as Indiana’s first director of the Department of Agriculture and then as director of the Office of Disaster Recovery before taking over the top job at the Bureau of Motor Vehicles in January 2009.

Last week, Daniels stood at Miller’s side as they announced the BMV had won an international award for customer service for cutting wait times at license branches at the same time they were instituting federal-required steps to ensure IDs are secure.

“I also know him to be a devoted father to three children, including one saved from cancer by Riley Children’s Hospital, for which Andy in turn has raised substantial funds in gratitude,” Daniels said.

Daniels appointed Miller to the $115,000-a-year post of BMV commissioner in January 2009 to replace Ron Stiver. With 140 branches statewide, the BMV oversees driver’s licenses and credentials for about 5.6 million Hoosiers and registrations for more than 6.6 million vehicles and watercraft.

A native of DeKalb County and a Purdue University graduate, Miller had served as director of the state Department of Agriculture from 2005 to July 2008.

Before joining state government, he was vice president of research, development and marketing for Weaver Popcorn and held posts at Procter & Gamble, Nabisco and ConAgra.

The charge against Miller is a misdemeanor. He was released from the Marion County Jail about 9 p.m. Wednesday on $150 bond.

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Criminal Charges Disappear After Indianapolis Indiana Police Officer David Bisard Killed One And Injured Two Others In Drunken Patrol Car Wreck

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – Questions about how Indianapolis police have handled a fatal drunken-driving investigation of one of their own officers became that much more pointed Thursday.

Marion County Prosecutor Carl Brizzi announced he would drop the most serious charges against officer David Bisard. Why? Because Bisard’s fellow police officers had botched the case.

The reaction was swift — and far-reaching.

An embarrassed Public Safety Director Frank Straub announced that the FBI will be brought in on the case. He also removed a lieutenant from his positions as commander of the department’s hit-and-run unit and coordinator of the multiagency Fatal Alcohol Crash Team.

One victim’s family called the dismissal a “travesty.” A legal expert said the police ineptness leaves the public with little choice but to wonder whether the bungled case was more than an accident. And Mayor Greg Ballard has become increasingly frustrated as he seeks answers, as well.

“The people in the city are not the only ones wondering what happened at the scene,” Ballard said. “I am, too.”

Straub and Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Chief Paul Ciesielski repeated their insistence Thursday that Bisard received “absolutely no deference” from fellow officers Aug. 6 after he crashed his cruiser into two motorcycles that were stopped at a light.

The impact of the crash — which occurred while Bisard, 36, was responding to a request for help serving a warrant, with his cruiser’s lights and siren activated — killed Eric Wells, 30, and seriously injured two other riders.

Bisard surrendered after prosecutors learned a blood test had shown his blood-alcohol level was 0.19 — more than twice the level at which an Indiana driver is considered intoxicated.

But that arrest didn’t come until five days after the crash because of the lag in test results. The delay in arresting Bisard drew scrutiny from some — as did the fact that no officers conducted field-sobriety or breath tests of Bisard at the scene.

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Crazed Indianapolis Indiana Police Harass And Arrest Man On Private Property For Having Sagging Pants

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – An Indiana man was arrested last night after cops spotted him with his pants “pulled down to his knees” and his boxer shorts exposed.

Demetrius Russ, 21, was sitting on top of an electrical box talking on his phone when approached by cop Daniel Green. According to an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department report, after Russ ignored Green’s repeated requests to provide ID, he announced, “You can’t ask me for shit.” Green reported telling Russ that he was “sitting on private property with his pants pulled down on top of an electrical box.”

Russ’s perch can be seen in this Google Street View photo.

When Green asked why his pants were so droopy, Russ noted that he “was just swagging.” The officer replied that, “swagging did not involve exposing your genitals through your boxers because your pants were pulled down all the way.” The term “swagging” generally refers to getting your drink on.

During his interaction with Green, a “belligerent” Russ allegedly cursed frequently and called the cop “nigga and muthafucker on several occasions.” While police contended that Russ appeared drunk, he claimed to have only consumed “one 40 ounce.”

Russ, pictured in the above mug shot, was charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct, since Indiana’s criminal codes apparently have yet to codify the offense of having one’s pants on the ground. (2 pages)

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Indiana State Police Want Drug Dealers To Call Them About Bogus Bills – Yeah, That Will Happen…

NEW ALBANY, INDIANA – A counterfeit bust lands five people behind bars in Floyd County. It happened at a New Albany apartment complex in the 2700 block of Paoli Pike on July 23. Police arrested Jerry Davey and Jonathan Alan Frantz after discovering $4,500 of fake money inside their apartment.

“When we walk into a room and we see literally thousands of dollars that’s printed, other dollars that are printed that are not cut out yet, the machine that’s making the money and also the people that are actually right there doing it, we feel like that’s a pretty significant bust,” said Sergeant Jerry Goodin of the Indiana State Police Sellersburg post.

Police arrested Davey and Frantz at the scene. As officers wrapped up their investigation, Goodin described a knock on the door. The visitor, Michael Casey, was questioned by police and ultimately led officers to another unit in the same complex.

“While we did our search there, we were able to locate half a pound of marijuana, hydrocodone and ecstasy,” Goodin said.

Casey and two others were arrested; 20-year-old Lindsay E. Portwood and 19-year-old Woodrow Sulikowski. Their charges included possession of marijuana and maintaining a common nuisance.

Goodin said those involved used fake cash to target high traffic businesses.

“They were going into small gas marts, grocery stores, places where they know there’s a lot of people,” Goodin said. “Where they can try to get in and out real quick. There’s a lot of people and the cashiers are in a real hurry.”

Those targeted also included drug dealers according to Goodin and he had a message for the victims.

“We have information allegedly that leads us to believe that a lot of this counterfeit money was going to buy drugs. What we are asking today is we want all the drug dealers to call us,” Goodin said. “We want to get all of your information and exactly what happened there. We want to see what we can do to try and help you. Trust us. Call us.”

Investigating agencies included the Floyd County Sheriff’s Department, Indiana State Police, New Albany City Police Department and the United States Secret Service.

Those responsible are being held at the Floyd County Jail in New Albany awaiting their first court appearance.

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Sex Tape And Indictment Surfaces For Gibson County Indiana Candidate For Prosecutor

PRINCETON, INDIANA - A southwestern Indiana attorney running for prosecutor has been indicted on charges that he had sex with a female client for her to pay off a $550 debt for legal work in a civil case.

Authorities said an Indiana State Police investigation of William Wallace, 57, of Princeton, began when the woman reported that Wallace had shown her boyfriend a video of their sexual encounters.

Special Prosecutor Jonathan Parkhurst said the woman told investigators she never gave permission for videotaping.

Detectives reported finding the videos and child pornography at Wallace’s home.

Wallace was arrested and released on bond Tuesday from the Gibson County Jail. Phone calls to his law office Wednesday went to a full voicemail box.

A special prosecutor was named because Wallace is the Democratic candidate for Gibson County prosecutor.

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Debt Collectors Turn County Jails Into Debtors’ Prisons

HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA – As a sheriff’s deputy dumped the contents of Joy Uhlmeyer’s purse into a sealed bag, she begged to know why she had just been arrested while driving home to Richfield after an Easter visit with her elderly mother.

No one had an answer. Uhlmeyer spent a sleepless night in a frigid Anoka County holding cell, her hands tucked under her armpits for warmth. Then, handcuffed in a squad car, she was taken to downtown Minneapolis for booking. Finally, after 16 hours in limbo, jail officials fingerprinted Uhlmeyer and explained her offense — missing a court hearing over an unpaid debt. “They have no right to do this to me,” said the 57-year-old patient care advocate, her voice as soft as a whisper. “Not for a stupid credit card.”

It’s not a crime to owe money, and debtors’ prisons were abolished in the United States in the 19th century. But people are routinely being thrown in jail for failing to pay debts. In Minnesota, which has some of the most creditor-friendly laws in the country, the use of arrest warrants against debtors has jumped 60 percent over the past four years, with 845 cases in 2009, a Star Tribune analysis of state court data has found.

Not every warrant results in an arrest, but in Minnesota many debtors spend up to 48 hours in cells with criminals. Consumer attorneys say such arrests are increasing in many states, including Arkansas, Arizona and Washington, driven by a bad economy, high consumer debt and a growing industry that buys bad debts and employs every means available to collect.

Whether a debtor is locked up depends largely on where the person lives, because enforcement is inconsistent from state to state, and even county to county.

In Illinois and southwest Indiana, some judges jail debtors for missing court-ordered debt payments. In extreme cases, people stay in jail until they raise a minimum payment. In January, a judge sentenced a Kenney, Ill., man “to indefinite incarceration” until he came up with $300 toward a lumber yard debt.

“The law enforcement system has unwittingly become a tool of the debt collectors,” said Michael Kinkley, an attorney in Spokane, Wash., who has represented arrested debtors. “The debt collectors are abusing the system and intimidating people, and law enforcement is going along with it.”

How often are debtors arrested across the country? No one can say. No national statistics are kept, and the practice is largely unnoticed outside legal circles. “My suspicion is the debt collection industry does not want the world to know these arrests are happening, because the practice would be widely condemned,” said Robert Hobbs, deputy director of the National Consumer Law Center in Boston.

Debt collectors defend the practice, saying phone calls, letters and legal actions aren’t always enough to get people to pay.

“Admittedly, it’s a harsh sanction,” said Steven Rosso, a partner in the Como Law Firm of St. Paul, which does collections work. “But sometimes, it’s the only sanction we have.”

Taxpayers foot the bill for arresting and jailing debtors. In many cases, Minnesota judges set bail at the amount owed.

In Minnesota, judges have issued arrest warrants for people who owe as little as $85 — less than half the cost of housing an inmate overnight. Debtors targeted for arrest owed a median of $3,512 in 2009, up from $2,201 five years ago.

Those jailed for debts may be the least able to pay.

“It’s just one more blow for people who are already struggling,” said Beverly Yang, a Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation staff attorney who has represented three Illinois debtors arrested in the past two months. “They don’t like being in court. They don’t have cars. And if they had money to pay these collectors, they would.”

The collection machine

The laws allowing for the arrest of someone for an unpaid debt are not new.

What is new is the rise of well-funded, aggressive and centralized collection firms, in many cases run by attorneys, that buy up unpaid debt and use the courts to collect.

Three debt buyers — Unifund CCR Partners, Portfolio Recovery Associates Inc. and Debt Equities LLC — accounted for 15 percent of all debt-related arrest warrants issued in Minnesota since 2005, court data show. The debt buyers also file tens of thousands of other collection actions in the state, seeking court orders to make people pay.

The debts — often five or six years old — are purchased from companies like cellphone providers and credit card issuers, and cost a few cents on the dollar. Using automated dialing equipment and teams of lawyers, the debt-buyer firms try to collect the debt, plus interest and fees. A firm aims to collect at least twice what it paid for the debt to cover costs. Anything beyond that is profit.

Portfolio Recovery Associates of Norfolk, Va., a publicly traded debt buyer with the biggest profits and market capitalization, earned $44 million last year on $281 million in revenue — a 16 percent net margin. Encore Capital Group, another large debt buyer based in San Diego, had a margin last year of 10 percent. By comparison, Wal-Mart’s profit margin was 3.5 percent.

Todd Lansky, chief operating officer at Resurgence Financial LLC, a Northbrook, Ill.-based debt buyer, said firms like his operate within the law, which says people who ignore court orders can be arrested for contempt. By the time a warrant is issued, a debtor may have been contacted up to 12 times, he said.

“This is a last-ditch effort to say, ‘Look, just show up in court,’” he said.

Go to court — or jail

At 9:30 a.m. on a recent weekday morning, about a dozen people stood in line at the Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis.

Nearly all of them had received court judgments for not paying a delinquent debt. One by one, they stepped forward to fill out a two-page financial disclosure form that gives creditors the information they need to garnish money from their paychecks or bank accounts.

This process happens several times a week in Hennepin County. Those who fail to appear can be held in contempt and an arrest warrant is issued if a collector seeks one. Arrested debtors aren’t officially charged with a crime, but their cases are heard in the same courtroom as drug users.

Greg Williams, who is unemployed and living on state benefits, said he made the trip downtown on the advice of his girlfriend who knew someone who had been arrested for missing such a hearing.

“I was surprised that the police would waste time on my petty debts,” said Williams, 45, of Minneapolis, who had a $5,773 judgment from a credit card debt. “Don’t they have real criminals to catch?”

Few debtors realize they can land in jail simply for ignoring debt-collection legal matters. Debtors also may not recognize the names of companies seeking to collect old debts. Some people are contacted by three or four firms as delinquent debts are bought and sold multiple times after the original creditor writes off the account.

“They may think it’s a mistake. They may think it’s a scam. They may not realize how important it is to respond,” said Mary Spector, a law professor at Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law in Dallas.

A year ago, Legal Aid attorneys proposed a change in state law that would have required law enforcement officials to let debtors fill out financial disclosure forms when they are apprehended rather than book them into jail. No legislator introduced the measure.

Joy Uhlmeyer, who was arrested on her way home from spending Easter with her mother, said she defaulted on a $6,200 Chase credit card after a costly divorce in 2006. The firm seeking payment was Resurgence Financial, the Illinois debt buyer. Uhlmeyer said she didn’t recognize the name and ignored the notices.

Uhlmeyer walked free after her nephew posted $2,500 bail. It took another $187 to retrieve her car from the city impound lot. Her 86-year-old mother later asked why she didn’t call home after leaving Duluth. Not wanting to tell the truth, Uhlmeyer said her car broke down and her cell phone died.

“The really maddening part of the whole experience was the complete lack of information,” she said. “I kept thinking, ‘If there was a warrant out for my arrest, then why in the world wasn’t I told about it?’”

Jailed for $250

One afternoon last spring, Deborah Poplawski, 38, of Minneapolis was digging in her purse for coins to feed a downtown parking meter when she saw the flashing lights of a Minneapolis police squad car behind her. Poplawski, a restaurant cook, assumed she had parked illegally. Instead, she was headed to jail over a $250 credit card debt.

Less than a month earlier, she learned by chance from an employment counselor that she had an outstanding warrant. Debt Equities, a Golden Valley debt buyer, had sued her, but she says nobody served her with court documents. Thanks to interest and fees, Poplawski was now on the hook for $1,138.

Though she knew of the warrant and unpaid debt, “I wasn’t equating the warrant with going to jail, because there wasn’t criminal activity associated with it,” she said. “I just thought it was a civil thing.”

She spent nearly 25 hours at the Hennepin County jail.

A year later, she still gets angry recounting the experience. A male inmate groped her behind in a crowded elevator, she said. Poplawski also was ordered to change into the standard jail uniform — gray-white underwear and orange pants, shirt and socks — in a cubicle the size of a telephone booth. She slept in a room with 12 to 16 women and a toilet with no privacy. One woman offered her drugs, she said.

The next day, Poplawski appeared before a Hennepin County district judge. He told her to fill out the form listing her assets and bank account, and released her. Several weeks later, Debt Equities used this information to seize funds from her bank account. The firm didn’t return repeated calls seeking a comment.

“We hear every day about how there’s no money for public services,” Poplawski said. “But it seems like the collectors have found a way to get the police to do their work.”

Threat depends on location

A lot depends on where a debtor lives or is arrested, as Jamie Rodriguez, 41, a bartender from Brooklyn Park, discovered two years ago.

Deputies showed up at his house one evening while he was playing with his 5-year-old daughter, Nicole. They live in Hennepin County, where the Sheriff’s Office has enough staff to seek out people with warrants for civil violations.

If Rodriquez lived in neighboring Wright County, he could have simply handed the officers a check or cash for the amount owed. If he lived in Dakota County, it’s likely no deputy would have shown up because the Sheriff’s Office there says it lacks the staff to pursue civil debt cases.

Knowing that his daughter and wife were watching from the window, Rodriguez politely asked the deputies to drive him around the block, out of sight of his family, before they handcuffed him. The deputies agreed.

“No little girl should have to see her daddy arrested,” said Rodriguez, who spent a night in jail.

“If you talk to 15 different counties, you’ll find 15 different approaches to handling civil warrants,” said Sgt. Robert Shingledecker of the Dakota County Sheriff’s Office. “Everything is based on manpower.”

Local police also can enforce debt-related warrants, but small towns and some suburbs often don’t have enough officers.

The Star Tribune’s comparison of warrant and booking data suggests that at least 1 in 6 Minnesota debtors at risk for arrest actually lands in jail, typically for eight hours. The exact number of such arrests isn’t known because the government doesn’t consistently track what happens to debtor warrants.

“There are no standards here,” said Gail Hillebrand, a senior attorney with the Consumers Union in San Francisco. “A borrower who lives on one side of the river can be arrested while another one goes free. It breeds disrespect for the law.”

Haekyung Nielsen, 27, of Bloomington, said police showed up at her house on a civil warrant two weeks after she gave birth through Caesarean section. A debt buyer had sent her court papers for an old credit-card debt while she was in the hospital; Nielsen said she did not have time to respond.

Her baby boy, Tyler, lay in the crib as she begged the officer not to take her away.

“Thank God, the police had mercy and left me and my baby alone,” said Nielsen, who later paid the debt. “But to send someone to arrest me two weeks after a massive surgery that takes most women eight weeks to recover from was just unbelievable.”

The second surprise

Many debtors, like Robert Vee, 36, of Brooklyn Park, get a second surprise after being arrested — their bail is exactly the amount of money owed.

Hennepin County automatically sets bail at the judgment amount or $2,500, whichever is less. This policy was adopted four years ago in response to the high volume of debtor default cases, say court officials.

Some judges say the practice distorts the purpose of bail, which is to make sure people show up in court.

“It’s certainly an efficient way to collect debts, but it’s also highly distasteful,” said Hennepin County District Judge Jack Nordby. “The amount of bail should have nothing to do with the amount of the debt.”

Judge Robert Blaeser, chief of the county court’s civil division, said linking bail to debt streamlines the process because judges needn’t spend time setting bail.

“It’s arbitrary,” he conceded. “The bigger question is: Should you be allowed to get an order from a court for someone to be arrested because they owe money? You’ve got to remember there are people who have the money but just won’t pay a single penny.”

If friends or family post a debtor’s bail, they can expect to kiss the money goodbye, because it often ends up with creditors, who routinely ask judges for the bail payment.

Vee, a highway construction worker, was arrested one afternoon in February while driving his teenage daughter from school to their home in Brooklyn Park. As he was being cuffed, Vee said his daughter, who has severe asthma, started hyperventilating from the stress.

“All I kept thinking about was whether she was all right and if she was using her [asthma] inhaler,” he said.

From the Hennepin County jail, he made a collect call to his landlord, who promised to bring the bail. It was $1,875.06, the exact amount of a credit card debt.

Later, Vee was reunited with his distraught daughter at home. “We hugged for a long time, and she was bawling her eyes out,” he said.

He still has unpaid medical and credit card bills and owes about $40,000 on an old second mortgage. The sight of a squad car in his rearview mirror is all it takes to set off a fresh wave of anxiety.

“The question always crosses my mind: ‘Are the cops going to arrest me again?’” he said. “So long as I’ve got unpaid bills, the threat is there.”

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Dumbass Veteran Elkhart City Indiana Police Officer Benjamin Kruszynski Charged After Drunken Wreck In Patrol Car

ELKHART COUNTY, INDIANA — A late night accident on the Elkhart County-St. Joseph County line ended with a police car in pieces, and an Elkhart City police officer behind bars. Police arrested Cpl. Benjamin Kruszynski, 38, on a misdemeanor charge of Operating While Intoxicated.

Cpl. Kruszynski is a 9-year veteran officer of the Elkhart Police Department.

Elkhart Police say Kruszynski was behind the wheel of a marked Elkhart Police squad car when the vehicle left the road and hit two fences and a tree. It happened around 11:15 p.m. Sunday at Brummitt Road and Ash Road, right outside Discovery Middle School.

Police also say Kruszynski wasn’t alone in the squad car. A 43-year-old man and three 18-year-old females were also inside. Police have not released any of their names.

All walked away from the accident unhurt, according to a news release by Elkhart Police Lt. Ed Windbigler.

Witnesses say the vehicle had been driving at a high rate of speed on Brummitt toward Ash, when it hit the first fence, crossed Ash Road, and slammed into the tree.

It took out Allen Green’s wooden fence in the process.

After 15 years living on Ash Road, Green says he’s seen hundreds of speeding cars. But, until Sunday night, he’d never seen anything quite like what ended up just 15 feet from his front door.

“It sounded like something blew up,” Green said, walking toward the crash site, still littered with debris and fallen tree limbs. “I seen the smoke, and I came running out and it was an Elkhart Police car backwards into this tree.”

His first thought?

“I was surprised when I seen a police car sitting there. I didn’t know what to think. I thought, maybe they were chasing somebody or something,” Green said.

Robert Bobak thought the same thing when he heard the crash.

“I heard this screeching halt, like a car sliding with its brakes on, and then, the impact. I thought it had hit the house, because it shook our house. That’s how hard it hit. It shook the house, and we’re two houses down,” Bobak said.

He ran out to the scene too, and couldn’t believe what he saw.

“When it hit the tree, it pushed the trunk all the way to the back window. There was no trunk left. I thought they must have been in a chase, chasing somebody down. Then I realized it was a one car crash,” Bobak said.

Both men asked Kruszynski the same thing.

“I yelled at him, and said, ‘Hey, do you guys need me to call 911?’ He said, ‘No, I think everybody’s alright,’” recalled Green. “One of the teenagers was already out of the car, and two more were getting out when I came out.”

“I said, ‘Well, who was driving this police car?’ Because I figured the police officer was out walking around. [Kruszynski] said, ‘I was.’ Well, he was off duty in shorts,” recalled Bobak.

“I asked him if he was OK, and he said ‘I’m having problems in my neighborhood.’ And he walked away and put his hands down and kind of shook his head,” Bobak continued.

According to Elkhart County Police Department Public Information Officer Trevor Wendzonka, Cpl. Kruszynski was arrested at the scene for suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol. He was booked into the county jail shortly after 1 a.m. and administered a breathalyzer test that registered 0.12.

That’s 1.5 times the legal limit of 0.08.

Wendzonka says all of the teens in the squad car passed field sobriety tests and were determined not to have been drinking.

Still, questions remained from witnesses over why the teens were in the squad car in the first place.

“One of the parents of one of the kids stopped by here and said the 43-year-old was a parent of one of the teenagers,” said Green. “But, even if that’s the case, I don’t know why they were there.”

Lt. Windbigler wouldn’t comment on the answer, or speak with WSBT on camera, referring all questions to the news release.

He also added that “the entire incident is still under investigation,” and that the department hopes to issue an updated news release Tuesday.

No one answered the door at Kruszynski’s Elkhart home near Simonton Lake Monday, but neighbors described him as a “quiet” man who keeps mostly to himself.

Neighbors living near the scene of the crash have a different feeling, however.

“Our children are supposed to be looking up to these guys,” said Bobak. “I don’t think I’d want my kids to look up to that. I just thank God nobody was injured.”

Kruszynski remained in the Elkhart County Jail Monday evening without bond, but is scheduled to appear before a magistrate judge Tuesday, Wendzonka said.

WSBT’s calls to police administrators about Kruszynski’s current status as an Elkhart police officer were not returned.

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Indianapolis Indiana Police Officer Michael Leepper Arrested, Charged With Drunk Driving

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — An Indianapolis police officer was arrested early Friday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, police said.

Michael Leepper was pulled over while driving on Interstate 65 near the East Street ramp after an unsafe lane movement, state police said.

The trooper who pulled over Leepper reported a strong smell of alcohol coming from the vehicle.

After failing a field sobriety test, Leepper was arrested and preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated and public intoxication.

He was driving his personal vehicle at the time of his arrest.

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Indianapolis Indiana Police Officer Michael Leepper Arrested, Charged With Drunk Driving

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — An Indianapolis police officer was arrested early Friday on suspicion of driving while intoxicated, police said.

Michael Leepper was pulled over while driving on Interstate 65 near the East Street ramp after an unsafe lane movement, state police said.

The trooper who pulled over Leepper reported a strong smell of alcohol coming from the vehicle.

After failing a field sobriety test, Leepper was arrested and preliminarily charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated and public intoxication.

He was driving his personal vehicle at the time of his arrest.

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Dumbass French Lick Indiana Police Officer Justin Mullis Crashes Motorcycle While Escorting Funeral And Dies

MARTINSVILLE, INDIANA – An off-duty French Lick police officer was killed Wednesday when his motorcycle crashed while he was escorting a funeral on Indiana 67 in Morgan County.

Morgan County sheriff’s deputies are investigating the crash that occurred shortly after 3:30 p.m. as the funeral procession headed northbound near Martinsville, about 15 miles southwest of Indianapolis.

French Lick Police Chief Thomas McCracken identified the officer as patrol detective Justin Mullis, 48.

McCracken said Mullis lost control of his motorcycle and drove off the roadway, with the motorcycle coming to rest on its side.

Mullis was airlifted to St. Francis Hospital in Mooresville and then again to an Indianapolis hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

No other vehicles were involved in the crash.

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Dumbass French Lick Indiana Police Officer Justin Mullis Crashes Motorcycle While Escorting Funeral And Dies

MARTINSVILLE, INDIANA – An off-duty French Lick police officer was killed Wednesday when his motorcycle crashed while he was escorting a funeral on Indiana 67 in Morgan County.

Morgan County sheriff’s deputies are investigating the crash that occurred shortly after 3:30 p.m. as the funeral procession headed northbound near Martinsville, about 15 miles southwest of Indianapolis.

French Lick Police Chief Thomas McCracken identified the officer as patrol detective Justin Mullis, 48.

McCracken said Mullis lost control of his motorcycle and drove off the roadway, with the motorcycle coming to rest on its side.

Mullis was airlifted to St. Francis Hospital in Mooresville and then again to an Indianapolis hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

No other vehicles were involved in the crash.

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Dumbass Indiana State Police Trooper Chris Pestow’s Facebook Page Included Cruiser Crash Photos, Photo Of Indianapolis Police Officer Andrew Deddish Holding A Gun To His Head, Wanting To Kill The Homeless, Etc.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – An Indiana State Trooper is under investigation for what some call compromising photos and statements he posted on the Internet.

Police say what 13 Investigates found on Trooper Chris Pestow’s personal Facebook page is embarrassing and might even be against the law. Some of the entries showed Pestow with a .357 Magnum pointed at his head, drinking what he described as lots of beer with his buddies and lewd horseplay.

Over the past several months, Pestow has used his Facebook page to brag of heavy drinking. He also posted pictures of a crash involving his ISP cruiser.

“Oops! Where did my front end go?” he wrote when he posted the picture. Later, while discussing the accident with his friends on Facebook, Pestow added, “kiss my butt, Not my fault.:)”

And he isn’t shy about sharing his views of police work, referring to himself as not a state trooper, but as a “garbage man.” His Facebook page said, “I pick up trash for a living.”

Pestow also weighed in on the issue of people who resist arrest and threaten police officers. Referring to an incident in California in which Fresno Police officers punched a homeless man during his arrest, Pestow wrote: “Let someone, homeless or not, try and stab me with a pen, knife, spoon, etc, not only will he fail, he’ll probably end up shot. These people should have died when they were young anyway, i’m just doing them a favor.” [sic]

Eyewitness News interviewed Pestow in December 2008 while he was responding to traffic accidents on an icy stretch of I-465. He wasn’t happy about the icy conditions, and we know that because after the interview, at 5:42 a.m., his Facebook page has this entry: “Chris Pestow is very mad @ whoever is responsible for this awful weather.”

Now, the Indiana State Police may be very mad at him.

“There has been an internal investigation started,” said ISP Major Carlos Pettiford, adding that investigators are trying to determine if the photos and information posted on Pestow’s Facebook page violate department rules.

Pettiford says the state’s biggest concern is that Trooper Pestow may have been Facebook-ing while you were paying for it.

ISP records show Pestow was on duty during the early morning hours of February 11. That day at 2 a.m., an entry on his Facebook page reads “Chris Pestow is NOT working in the rain.”

On February 19, while state records indicate Pestow was working his overnight shift, the Trooper’s Facebook site shows this entry at 3:22 a.m.: “It’s cold AND snowing?!?! I can’t possibly work in these conditions.”

And on November 28 at 1:20 a.m., ISP says Pestow was supposed to be on duty at the same time he apparently wrote, “Chris Pestow is keeping the mean streets of Fishers safe and free of trash.”

A friend quickly responded to that post.

“Hmmmm. how are u keeping the streets safe … if u r on facebook? ,” the friend wrote.

ISP is wondering the same thing.

“That’s a clear violation. We know that right off the bat,” said Major Pettiford. “When they’re working, that’s exactly what they’re supposed to be doing is working, not playing or writing on the internet unless it’s for department business.”

Pestow isn’t the only one who is now facing possible punishment.

The man holding the gun to his head in one of the photos is also a police officer. Andrew Deddish works for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and officials there are not happy with the picture.

“We’re trained [that] we don’t point firearms at anything we don’t plan to shoot,” said IMPD Sgt. Paul Thompson.

Thompson said Deddish is now facing an internal investigation, because pointing a gun at someone is against state law and because he says a police officer should know better.

“It’s embarrassing. We’re always under public scrutiny. We hold a position that’s a trust to the public. You’re expected to act accordingly,” Thompson said.

So what were the officers thinking by posing for the picture and later posting it on the internet?
“They weren’t thinking,” said Thompson. “It was an error in judgment … so now there has to be accountability and that’s what we’re going to do.”

13 Investigates tried to reach Chris Pestow through his family and friends, but the state Trooper has not responded to WTHR’s request for an interview.

Pettiford said ISP contacted Pestow Monday – the same day WTHR contacted ISP to ask about the photos and information posted on the Facebook page — to inform the state officer he was the focus of an internal investigation. Pestow did remove his Facebook page from the Internet that same afternoon, but not before 13 Investigates, State Police and IMPD had a very good look at it.

ISP is currently in the process of drafting a Standard Operating Procedure for all department staff regarding posting information on personal web pages such as Facebook.

“These are new times,” Pettiford said. “We didn’t have Facebook when I got into law enforcement, but nowadays it’s out there so we’re putting together a policy.”

Officials told Eyewitness News both Pestow and Deddish will remain on paid duty while their departments conduct the internal investigations, which will probably take several weeks.

Police say this situation should provide a powerful reminder to all of us: don’t post anything on the Internet that you would not want to see on the news.

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Dumbass Indiana State Police Trooper Chris Pestow’s Facebook Page Included Cruiser Crash Photos, Photo Of Indianapolis Police Officer Andrew Deddish Holding A Gun To His Head, Wanting To Kill The Homeless, Etc.

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – An Indiana State Trooper is under investigation for what some call compromising photos and statements he posted on the Internet.

Police say what 13 Investigates found on Trooper Chris Pestow’s personal Facebook page is embarrassing and might even be against the law. Some of the entries showed Pestow with a .357 Magnum pointed at his head, drinking what he described as lots of beer with his buddies and lewd horseplay.

Over the past several months, Pestow has used his Facebook page to brag of heavy drinking. He also posted pictures of a crash involving his ISP cruiser.

“Oops! Where did my front end go?” he wrote when he posted the picture. Later, while discussing the accident with his friends on Facebook, Pestow added, “kiss my butt, Not my fault.:)”

And he isn’t shy about sharing his views of police work, referring to himself as not a state trooper, but as a “garbage man.” His Facebook page said, “I pick up trash for a living.”

Pestow also weighed in on the issue of people who resist arrest and threaten police officers. Referring to an incident in California in which Fresno Police officers punched a homeless man during his arrest, Pestow wrote: “Let someone, homeless or not, try and stab me with a pen, knife, spoon, etc, not only will he fail, he’ll probably end up shot. These people should have died when they were young anyway, i’m just doing them a favor.” [sic]

Eyewitness News interviewed Pestow in December 2008 while he was responding to traffic accidents on an icy stretch of I-465. He wasn’t happy about the icy conditions, and we know that because after the interview, at 5:42 a.m., his Facebook page has this entry: “Chris Pestow is very mad @ whoever is responsible for this awful weather.”

Now, the Indiana State Police may be very mad at him.

“There has been an internal investigation started,” said ISP Major Carlos Pettiford, adding that investigators are trying to determine if the photos and information posted on Pestow’s Facebook page violate department rules.

Pettiford says the state’s biggest concern is that Trooper Pestow may have been Facebook-ing while you were paying for it.

ISP records show Pestow was on duty during the early morning hours of February 11. That day at 2 a.m., an entry on his Facebook page reads “Chris Pestow is NOT working in the rain.”

On February 19, while state records indicate Pestow was working his overnight shift, the Trooper’s Facebook site shows this entry at 3:22 a.m.: “It’s cold AND snowing?!?! I can’t possibly work in these conditions.”

And on November 28 at 1:20 a.m., ISP says Pestow was supposed to be on duty at the same time he apparently wrote, “Chris Pestow is keeping the mean streets of Fishers safe and free of trash.”

A friend quickly responded to that post.

“Hmmmm. how are u keeping the streets safe … if u r on facebook? ,” the friend wrote.

ISP is wondering the same thing.

“That’s a clear violation. We know that right off the bat,” said Major Pettiford. “When they’re working, that’s exactly what they’re supposed to be doing is working, not playing or writing on the internet unless it’s for department business.”

Pestow isn’t the only one who is now facing possible punishment.

The man holding the gun to his head in one of the photos is also a police officer. Andrew Deddish works for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and officials there are not happy with the picture.

“We’re trained [that] we don’t point firearms at anything we don’t plan to shoot,” said IMPD Sgt. Paul Thompson.

Thompson said Deddish is now facing an internal investigation, because pointing a gun at someone is against state law and because he says a police officer should know better.

“It’s embarrassing. We’re always under public scrutiny. We hold a position that’s a trust to the public. You’re expected to act accordingly,” Thompson said.

So what were the officers thinking by posing for the picture and later posting it on the internet?
“They weren’t thinking,” said Thompson. “It was an error in judgment … so now there has to be accountability and that’s what we’re going to do.”

13 Investigates tried to reach Chris Pestow through his family and friends, but the state Trooper has not responded to WTHR’s request for an interview.

Pettiford said ISP contacted Pestow Monday – the same day WTHR contacted ISP to ask about the photos and information posted on the Facebook page — to inform the state officer he was the focus of an internal investigation. Pestow did remove his Facebook page from the Internet that same afternoon, but not before 13 Investigates, State Police and IMPD had a very good look at it.

ISP is currently in the process of drafting a Standard Operating Procedure for all department staff regarding posting information on personal web pages such as Facebook.

“These are new times,” Pettiford said. “We didn’t have Facebook when I got into law enforcement, but nowadays it’s out there so we’re putting together a policy.”

Officials told Eyewitness News both Pestow and Deddish will remain on paid duty while their departments conduct the internal investigations, which will probably take several weeks.

Police say this situation should provide a powerful reminder to all of us: don’t post anything on the Internet that you would not want to see on the news.

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Lawsuit Charges Trigger-Happy Carmel Indiana Police Officer Matthew Kinkade With Repeated Taser Weapon Attack On 90 Pound 14 Year Old Boy

CARMEL, INDIANA – A middle-school student with autism was Tased twice by a Carmel police officer, according to a lawsuit filed by the boy’s parents against the Police Department, one of its officers and a local school district.

According to the suit, the electrical bursts temporarily knocked the 90-pound boy unconscious during a confrontation at Creekside Middle School. The boy, who was 14 at the time, was taken to a local hospital before being released to his mother.
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The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis, seeks damages for medical expenses, pain, suffering and mental anguish. The defendants are the Carmel Police Department, officer Matthew Kinkade and Carmel Clay Schools.

Carmel Clay Superintendent Barbara Underwood declined to comment, citing the pending lawsuit. Efforts to contact Kinkade and a spokesman for the Carmel Police Department were not successful Thursday.

According to the lawsuit:

On March 11, the boy, who is not named in the complaint, was dropped off at Creekside by his mother, Dianne Bell, who called to tell school officials her son was going to be late.

At the end of the day, the boy was told he was going to receive detention. At that point, the boy, who is described as having “affective disorder and has been diagnosed with autism, manic-depressive disorder and bipolar disorder,” became “frustrated and began to act out.”

“During this outburst he is saying outrageous things,” said the Bells’ attorney, Ronald Frazier, noting that the boy threatened to call members of his gang to retaliate against the teachers.

“They know there is no gang there,” Frazier said. “They know he has no way of acting on what he is saying. They are taking these idle threats and calling police.”

The Bells contend the school district failed to follow the guidelines they had set up to deal with the boy’s outbursts — techniques the family says would have given the boy a chance to cool off.

“When a child like (the Bells’ son) starts to have emotional problems, the (individual procedure) is supposed to be followed,” Frazier said. “It has specific steps that are to be taken in order to keep the child from melting totally down.”

Instead, school officials dialed 911.

Officer Kinkade arrived, according to the complaint, and reacted to the boy’s outbursts by grabbing him and forcing him to a bench in the school lobby.

When the physical force failed to control the 5-foot boy, Kinkade drew his Taser and shocked the boy two times until he lost consciousness, according to the complaint.

“Officer Kinkade used unreasonable and excessive force by failing to follow policies and procedures that were in place for dealing with autistic children,” the suit alleges.

Frazier contends in the suit that although school officials say they advised police about the boy’s condition, the Police Department says that’s not so.

The Police Department has an autism response team, but it was not dispatched. Kinkade is not a member of that team, according to the suit.

“Autistic children have a great difficulty interpreting what others are thinking or feeling because they don’t understand social cues,” Frazier said. “(The Bell child) gets confronted with violence, with Tasers, and he is flipping out because of his sensory overload.”

The suit contends Carmel police were “grossly negligent in the training of Matthew Kinkade,” who joined the department in January 2006.

Noblesville Police Department Lt. Bruce Barnes, an instructor in the use of Tasers, said officers are trained to use the devices when lesser-force options are not available.

“You can use the Taser anytime anybody is punching, kicking or threatening to punch or kick,” Barnes said. “We can use it when we tell someone to do something, they refuse, lesser-force options are not available and they are a credible threat to you.”

Barnes declined to comment on whether the boy could have posed a credible threat to a police officer, saying he did not know the full circumstances of the incident.

Sheila Wolfe, director of the Indianapolis-based Autism Education and Training Center, said the reaction of school officials and the police officer agitated the boy.

“You need to step away and leave them alone so that they can decompress,” said Wolfe, who has an autistic son in middle school in Carmel Clay. “I have a hard time believing that a trained officer would Taser a child with a disability if they fully understood the situation they were walking into.

“I know from experience that the people in Carmel (Clay schools) know better. As a school system, they have the expertise and they have the people available that know better. I’m surprised.”

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Lawsuit Charges Trigger-Happy Carmel Indiana Police Officer Matthew Kinkade With Repeated Taser Weapon Attack On 90 Pound 14 Year Old Boy

CARMEL, INDIANA – A middle-school student with autism was Tased twice by a Carmel police officer, according to a lawsuit filed by the boy’s parents against the Police Department, one of its officers and a local school district.

According to the suit, the electrical bursts temporarily knocked the 90-pound boy unconscious during a confrontation at Creekside Middle School. The boy, who was 14 at the time, was taken to a local hospital before being released to his mother.
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The suit, filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis, seeks damages for medical expenses, pain, suffering and mental anguish. The defendants are the Carmel Police Department, officer Matthew Kinkade and Carmel Clay Schools.

Carmel Clay Superintendent Barbara Underwood declined to comment, citing the pending lawsuit. Efforts to contact Kinkade and a spokesman for the Carmel Police Department were not successful Thursday.

According to the lawsuit:

On March 11, the boy, who is not named in the complaint, was dropped off at Creekside by his mother, Dianne Bell, who called to tell school officials her son was going to be late.

At the end of the day, the boy was told he was going to receive detention. At that point, the boy, who is described as having “affective disorder and has been diagnosed with autism, manic-depressive disorder and bipolar disorder,” became “frustrated and began to act out.”

“During this outburst he is saying outrageous things,” said the Bells’ attorney, Ronald Frazier, noting that the boy threatened to call members of his gang to retaliate against the teachers.

“They know there is no gang there,” Frazier said. “They know he has no way of acting on what he is saying. They are taking these idle threats and calling police.”

The Bells contend the school district failed to follow the guidelines they had set up to deal with the boy’s outbursts — techniques the family says would have given the boy a chance to cool off.

“When a child like (the Bells’ son) starts to have emotional problems, the (individual procedure) is supposed to be followed,” Frazier said. “It has specific steps that are to be taken in order to keep the child from melting totally down.”

Instead, school officials dialed 911.

Officer Kinkade arrived, according to the complaint, and reacted to the boy’s outbursts by grabbing him and forcing him to a bench in the school lobby.

When the physical force failed to control the 5-foot boy, Kinkade drew his Taser and shocked the boy two times until he lost consciousness, according to the complaint.

“Officer Kinkade used unreasonable and excessive force by failing to follow policies and procedures that were in place for dealing with autistic children,” the suit alleges.

Frazier contends in the suit that although school officials say they advised police about the boy’s condition, the Police Department says that’s not so.

The Police Department has an autism response team, but it was not dispatched. Kinkade is not a member of that team, according to the suit.

“Autistic children have a great difficulty interpreting what others are thinking or feeling because they don’t understand social cues,” Frazier said. “(The Bell child) gets confronted with violence, with Tasers, and he is flipping out because of his sensory overload.”

The suit contends Carmel police were “grossly negligent in the training of Matthew Kinkade,” who joined the department in January 2006.

Noblesville Police Department Lt. Bruce Barnes, an instructor in the use of Tasers, said officers are trained to use the devices when lesser-force options are not available.

“You can use the Taser anytime anybody is punching, kicking or threatening to punch or kick,” Barnes said. “We can use it when we tell someone to do something, they refuse, lesser-force options are not available and they are a credible threat to you.”

Barnes declined to comment on whether the boy could have posed a credible threat to a police officer, saying he did not know the full circumstances of the incident.

Sheila Wolfe, director of the Indianapolis-based Autism Education and Training Center, said the reaction of school officials and the police officer agitated the boy.

“You need to step away and leave them alone so that they can decompress,” said Wolfe, who has an autistic son in middle school in Carmel Clay. “I have a hard time believing that a trained officer would Taser a child with a disability if they fully understood the situation they were walking into.

“I know from experience that the people in Carmel (Clay schools) know better. As a school system, they have the expertise and they have the people available that know better. I’m surprised.”

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Having Solved All Of The State’s Other Problems, Illinois Targets Smiling Drivers

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — Hoosiers won’t be saying “cheese” when they get their driver’s license photos from now on.

The Bureau of Motor Vehicles has imposed new restrictions on anything — from smiling to wearing glasses and scarves and hats — that would hamper facial recognition software from distinguishing one driver’s looks from another’s.

“The technology looks at the permanent physical features of the face,” BMV spokesman Dennis Rosebrough said. “Because people smile differently, it can in effect distort the photograph. A straight-faced photograph enhances the effectiveness of the technology.”

About 20 other states — including Kentucky — use facial recognition technology to detect fraud in driver’s licenses. But not all states are as restrictive as Indiana.

Kentucky law prohibits drivers from wearing sunglasses or any clothing that obstructs the face but says nothing about smiles or prescription glasses. It leaves the final say on photos to circuit court clerks, who issue the licenses.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Division of Driver Licensing has not released directives for clerks to ban smiles, even though the vendor that provides the facial recognition software has said they can cause issues with the software, said cabinet spokesman Mark Brown.

“We can’t do anything the KRS (state law) doesn’t allow,” Brown said.

But state officials remain confident they “have an effective tool that helps combat fraud in the licensing process.”

The systems work by checking new license photos against others in the states’ databases. Rosebrough said the systems are looking for people using multiple names or the same name but different photos.

“If there’s a mismatch, the software will pop up with an exception, and then we’ll begin the process of examining it,” he said.

Kentucky started using its facial recognition software in 2005. Indiana started the program Nov. 18, when it installed new branch cameras that self-center the photos and assist with the recognition software.

So far, Indiana officials say they are getting 500 to 600 hits a day, which amounts to a sort of preliminary match from the computer system that raises questions about a photo. Rosebrough said that’s a manageable number and that the vast majority of issues are resolved quickly.

“It sounds more foreboding than it is,” he said.

A much smaller number get further investigation. None have so far been determined to be cases of fraud, he said.

To assist with the technology, drivers may be asked to brush hair away from their face, remove a headband or remain stone-faced during the photo, Rosebrough said. Even prescription glasses must be removed because they impede the software’s ability to see permanent features, he said.

Each of the state’s 140 license branches has signs that explain the new rules, and there have been a few questions. But Rosebrough said most people are accepting of the restrictions when they understand it’s to prevent fraud.

“There are exceptions based on bona fide religious or medical needs,” he said. “There is a process set out where people can be allowed to wear a hat or headgear or even glasses. But those situations are taken on a case-by-case basis.”

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Having Solved All Of The State’s Other Problems, Illinois Targets Smiling Drivers

INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA — Hoosiers won’t be saying “cheese” when they get their driver’s license photos from now on.

The Bureau of Motor Vehicles has imposed new restrictions on anything — from smiling to wearing glasses and scarves and hats — that would hamper facial recognition software from distinguishing one driver’s looks from another’s.

“The technology looks at the permanent physical features of the face,” BMV spokesman Dennis Rosebrough said. “Because people smile differently, it can in effect distort the photograph. A straight-faced photograph enhances the effectiveness of the technology.”

About 20 other states — including Kentucky — use facial recognition technology to detect fraud in driver’s licenses. But not all states are as restrictive as Indiana.

Kentucky law prohibits drivers from wearing sunglasses or any clothing that obstructs the face but says nothing about smiles or prescription glasses. It leaves the final say on photos to circuit court clerks, who issue the licenses.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Division of Driver Licensing has not released directives for clerks to ban smiles, even though the vendor that provides the facial recognition software has said they can cause issues with the software, said cabinet spokesman Mark Brown.

“We can’t do anything the KRS (state law) doesn’t allow,” Brown said.

But state officials remain confident they “have an effective tool that helps combat fraud in the licensing process.”

The systems work by checking new license photos against others in the states’ databases. Rosebrough said the systems are looking for people using multiple names or the same name but different photos.

“If there’s a mismatch, the software will pop up with an exception, and then we’ll begin the process of examining it,” he said.

Kentucky started using its facial recognition software in 2005. Indiana started the program Nov. 18, when it installed new branch cameras that self-center the photos and assist with the recognition software.

So far, Indiana officials say they are getting 500 to 600 hits a day, which amounts to a sort of preliminary match from the computer system that raises questions about a photo. Rosebrough said that’s a manageable number and that the vast majority of issues are resolved quickly.

“It sounds more foreboding than it is,” he said.

A much smaller number get further investigation. None have so far been determined to be cases of fraud, he said.

To assist with the technology, drivers may be asked to brush hair away from their face, remove a headband or remain stone-faced during the photo, Rosebrough said. Even prescription glasses must be removed because they impede the software’s ability to see permanent features, he said.

Each of the state’s 140 license branches has signs that explain the new rules, and there have been a few questions. But Rosebrough said most people are accepting of the restrictions when they understand it’s to prevent fraud.

“There are exceptions based on bona fide religious or medical needs,” he said. “There is a process set out where people can be allowed to wear a hat or headgear or even glasses. But those situations are taken on a case-by-case basis.”

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