Putnam Scanner for Jan. 3, 2018

Six people were booked in the Putnam County Jail recently.

Monday

• At 8:55 p.m. James Eugene Stevens, 40, Greencastle, was lodged at the jail for disorderly conduct and public intoxication.

• At 3:50 p.m. Curtis Morgan Shepherd, 26, Quincy, was taken into custody for driving while intoxicated and reckless driving.

• At 1:44 p.m. Haley Jordan Trueblood, 25, Greencastle, was housed at the jail for battery, battery with bodily fluid/waste, intimidation, criminal trespass, resisting law enforcement and disorderly conduct.

Sunday

• At 11:47 p.m. Ryan Lamar Miller, 31, Terre Haute, was booked in on a local warrant.

Saturday

• At 12:48 a.m. Joseph Nelson Bailey, 32, Greencastle, was lodged at the jail for driving while intoxicated with a prior conviction and for driving as a habitual traffic violator.

Friday

• At 12:13 a.m. Landis Earl Smith, 53, Gosport, was taken into custody for driving while intoxicated with a prior conviction.

City Police

A 64-year-old Greencastle man was arrested on six charges New Year’s Eve morning following a reported altercation with another patron at a local bar, Greencastle City Police reported.

George Chaplin was lodged in the Putnam County Jail after he was taken into custody by Officer Zach Rhine at 2:09 a.m. Sunday at Moore’s Bar where he reportedly threatened another patron.

Chaplin was held on initial charges that included two felonies, pointing a firearm and intimidation, and four misdemeanor charges of battery, criminal recklessness, disorderly conduct and public intoxication.

He registered a blood-alcohol content of .22 percent at the time of arrest, police reported.

Sheriff’s Department

Putnam County sheriff’s deputies investigated 16 recent property-damage crashes.

• At 6:35 a.m. on Tuesday, Deputy Brian Helmer investigated an incident in which two vehicles consecutively slid off the same curve.

Timothy A. Mink, 59, Poland, was northbound on County Road 275 East approaching a 90-degree turn in a 1997 Chevrolet Cavalier. He told the deputy the pavement was a sheet of ice and he slid off the road and into a fence.

Quinton R. Heffner, 25, Centerpoint, was also northbound in a 1995 Buick Park Avenue and also slid off the road. He avoided Mink’s vehicle but hit the same fence.

As Jerry’s Wrecker Service was pulling it out, Mink’s vehicle slid on the ice and hit the fence a second time.

Mink’s car was driven from the scene but Heffner’s had to be towed.

Damage was estimated at $5,001-$10,000.

• At 10:05 p.m. on Monday, Willie D. Vance, 23, Spencer, was westbound on County Road 275 East in a 2013 Chevrolet.

While approaching a curve, Vance lost control on the snow- and ice-covered roadway, hitting a fence.

Deputy Jeffery Freeman estimated damage at $2,501-$5,000. The vehicle was towed.

• At 5 p.m. on Monday, Justin R. Deyoung, 45, Coatesville, was southbound on County Road 400 East near County Road 375 North in a 2005 Ford Explorer when he lost control on the snow-covered road.

The vehicle slid into a ditch and rolled onto its top.

Deyoung left the scene prior to officers’ arrival due to the frigid temperatures.

The vehicle was towed. Damage was estimated at $2,501-$5,000.

• At 12:15 p.m. on Monday, Steven E. Spencer, 48, Coatesville, was southbound on County Road 750 East approaching County Road 200 North in a 2005 GMC Envoy.

Spencer told Deputy Matt Biggs that as he attempted to stop, the vehicle began to slide on the snow-covered road, proceeding through the intersection, where it collided with a stop sign that had already been hit and was down.

Damage was estimated at $2,501-$5,000.

• At 10:15 a.m. on Monday, Brian K. Martin, 51, Quincy, was northbound on County Road 275 East in a 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt when he lost control on the snow-covered road. The vehicle exited a curve and hit a stump.

The car had to be pulled from the ditch but was then driven from the scene.

Deputy Freeman estimated damage at less than $1,000.

• At 6:38 a.m. on Monday, Whitney T. Baker, 21, Greencastle, was southbound on U.S. 231 near County Road 25 South in a 2016 Jeep Commander when she hit a deer.

Deputy Anthony Brown estimated damage at $1,001-$2,500.

• At 4 a.m. on Monday, Brianna K. McKinney, 21, Fillmore, was northbound on County Road 75 West in a 2009 Chevrolet Aveo.

She told Capt. Tom Helmer she was not familiar with the road and was not aware of the snow and ice on the roadway. She lost control and left the east side of the road.

The car hit a telephone pole, fracturing it, before continue northeast and hitting several trees, coming to rest against one.

Damage was estimated at $2,501-$5,000. The vehicle was towed.

• At 1:21 a.m. on Monday, Jeffrey Berens, 47, Brownsburg, was eastbound on U.S. 40 in the right lane in a 2009 Nissan Murano. Gary Yeley, 62, Spencer, was also eastbound in the right lane in a 2007 Jeep Liberty.

Yeley told Sgt. Kyle Gibbons he was directly behind Berens’ vehicle when it began to slow, almost coming to a complete stop. Unsure what Berens was doing, Yeley followed for a brief time.

After a short distance, Yeley attempted to pass Beren’s vehicle in the left lane. As he tried to do so, he said Berens veered into the left land and hit his right front quarter panel and door.

Berens told Gibbons that Yeley passed him on the left and hit his vehicle while attempting to merge back into the right lane.

Gibbons conducted a field sobriety test on Berens and found him to be intoxicated. He tested at .20 on the portable breath test and at .18 on the certified test. He was booked in the Putnam County Jail at 3:45 a.m. for driving while intoxicated.

Berens’ vehicle was towed. Damage was estimated at $5,001-$10,000.

• At 1:07 a.m. on Monday, Troy R. Childers, 43, Roachdale, was southbound on County Road 650 West in a 2004 Chevrolet Trailblazer.

Childers told Deputy Riley Houghton he was exiting a corner when the vehicle began to slide on the ice, leaving the road and rolling onto the driver’s side.

The vehicle was towed. Damage was estimated at $2,501-$5,000.

• At 1:09 p.m. on Sunday, Grace K. Nall, 18, Hillsboro, was eastbound on Interstate 70 at the 41-mile marker in a 1998 Ford Explorer.

Indiana State Police troopers were working an accident in the median, pushing vehicles into the right lane.

Nall told Deputy Brian Helmer a semi changed lanes and caused her to lose control, hitting the guardrail on the south side of the road.

The SUV was towed. Damage was estimated at $1,001-$2,500.

• At 1:05 p.m. on Sunday, Chad Rolfsen, 37, Fillmore, was eastbound on County Road 50 West in a 2004 Pontiac Vibe when he slowed to turn into his driveway.

Dustin A. Costin, 20, Greencastle, was also eastbound in a 2003 Dodge Ram 1500. He told Deputy Biggs he could not slow down in time on the snow-covered road, hitting the passenger side of Rolfsen’s vehicle.

Rolfsen was issued a summons for driving with a suspended license with a prior conviction.

Damage was estimated at $10,001-$25,000.

• At 10:20 a.m. on Sunday, Andrea B. Schwibbe, 32, Bainbridge, was westbound on U.S. 36 in a 2009 Mitsubishi Outlander.

Schwibbe told Deputy Biggs she was approaching a sweeping turn when the vehicle began to fishtail, veering toward the eastbound lane. Fearing a head-on collision, she overcorrected and left the road, hitting a tree and a fence.

The vehicle was towed. Damage was estimated at $10,001-$25,000.

• At 2:12 a.m. on Sunday, Michael W. Gaddis, 34, Brazil, was southbound on County Road 700 East approaching County Road 300 East in a 2012 Chevrolet Impala.

Gaddis told Deputy Soilleux he tried to slow down and lost control, running off the road. He was able to avoid hitting trees but slid through the yard and into a parked car, which in turn hit a propane tank.

The vehicle was towed. Damage was estimated at $10,001-$25,000.

• Three hours earlier, Soilleux had worked a similar slide-off at the same location.

At 11:05 p.m. Saturday, Taylor N. Goss, 17, Cloverdale, was southbound on County Road 700 East approaching 300 North in a 2017 Toyota Camry.

Goss told Deputy Soilleux she slowed for the curve but lost control, sliding off the road and hitting a tree.

Damage was estimated at $2,501-$5,000.

• At 6:20 p.m. on Saturday, Rebecca M. Wilson, 57, Cloverdale, was northbound on U.S. 231 in a 2003 Chevrolet Monte Carlo when she hit a patch of ice.

She lost control, hitting the guardrail on the east side of the road and then across to the west side.

Wilson complained of head, neck and chest pain but refused medical aid. She said her family would take her to the hospital later.

Soilleux estimated damage at $10,001-$25,000.

• At 9:11 a.m. on Saturday, Ronnie E. VanBibber, 71, Bainbridge, was northbound on County Road 25 West in a 2012 Dodge Journey when he lost control on the snow-covered road.

The vehicle left the east side of the road and hit a tree.

The vehicle was towed. Deputy Brian Helmer estimated damage at $5,001-$10,000.

• At 8 a.m. on Saturday, Duane Otis of Texas had pulled into the Cloverdale Truck Stop in a 2004 International semi tractor pulling a flatbed trailer. The trailer was registered to Fleetwood Transport Service, Diboll, Texas.

Otis said he stopped in the lot and set the air brakes. He told Deputy Biggs he sat in the truck for several minutes to ensure it would not slide down the snow-covered grade in the parking lot.

He then exited the vehicle and went into the truck stop.

Upon returning, Otis found his truck had slid down the hill and collided with a building, causing structural damage.

Neither the building nor the truck was occupied.

Upon inspection, it was discovered that the tractor air brakes were set, but the trailer air brakes were not. Otis said he did not set the trailer brakes for fear they would freeze up.

The truck was towed. Damage was estimated at $50,001-$100,000.

• At 4:28 p.m. on Friday, Brittney N. Penley, 31, Greencastle, was southbound on County Road 300 West in a 2004 Honda Accord attempting to turn west on County Road 450 South. As she attempted to turn, the car slid into a stop sign.

Deputy Soilleux estimated damage at $2,501-$5,000.

Information included in the Putnam Scanner is taken from reports provided to the Banner Graphic by the Greencastle Police, the Greencastle Fire and the Putnam County Sheriff’s departments.

Individuals listed in the blotter have been arrested on probable cause and have not been formally charged. Charging information may change after an initial arrest.