Putnam Scanner for June 30, 2023

County Jail

Seven people were booked in the Putnam County Jail recently.

Thursday

• At 1:40 a.m. Ian D. Tracey, 37, Greencastle, was booked in for driving with an ACE of .08 or more, resisting law enforcement and reckless driving.

Wednesday

• At 10:38 p.m. Landon Swearingen, 30, Terre Haute, was lodged at the jail for driving while intoxicated.

• At 9:38 a.m. Dustin M. Kennedy, 28, Cloverdale, was taken into custody on a local warrant.

• At 7:47 a.m. Jacob A. Leach, 31, Rockville, was housed at the jail for driving while intoxicated and possession of paraphernalia.

• At 1:57 a.m. Larry D. Patterson, 60, Poland, was booked in on a local warrant.

• At 12:19 a.m. Douglas M. Flynn, 54, Indianapolis, was lodged at the jail on warrants for burglary and theft.

Tuesday

• At 10:40 p.m. Michael C. Hammond, 26, Brazil, was taken into custody for dealing in marijuana, possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance.

City Police

One recent summons was issued by Greencastle City Police officers:

• At 5:40 p.m. Monday, Michael O’Conner, 44, Greencastle, was cited by Officer Jared McDaniel.

Stopped on South Jackson Street, O’Conner was issued a summons into court for driving with a suspended license with a prior offense.

One recent citation was also issued by Greencastle officers:

• At 12:45 p.m. Tuesday, Jacob Capps, 31, Greencastle, was ticketed for speeding by Sgt. Nick Eastham.

Stopped on South Street, Capps was cited for 51 mph in a 30-mph zone.

Sheriff’s Office

Putnam County sheriff’s deputies investigated four recent crashes.

• At 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Shelly M. Starr, 61, Fillmore, was westbound on Old Right of Way Road in a 2017 Chevrolet Traverse when two deer crossed in front of her and she hit the second.

Deputy Josh Clark estimated damage at $5,000-$10,000.

• At 4:07 p.m. on Tuesday, Cody D. Scott, 29, Ladoga, was westbound on U.S. 36 in a 2015 Hyundai Elantra when he hit a dog.

The dog’s owner took it to the vet following the incident.

Deputy Brian Helmer estimated damage at $5,000-$10,000.

• At 9:10 a.m. on Tuesday, James D. Link, 82, Crawfordsville, was southbound on U.S. 231 just south of Brick Chapel in a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado pulling a trailer hauling a lawnmower.

As the driver continued south from Brick Chapel, he failed to negotiate a curve in the road, instead exiting the west side, where the truck hit a mailbox, utility pole, telephone box and several trees before coming to rest behind a guardrail.

The impact damaged the truck, trailer and Dixie Chopper lawnmower, all of which were towed.

Medics on the scene told Cpl. Helmer that Link was having a medical emergency. However, he did not appear otherwise injured, signing a statement of release before family picked him up.

A witness had called the truck in as a possibly impaired driver a few minutes earlier, but no officers were in the immediate area. The witness continued following until the crash.

Helmer estimated damage at $10,000-$25,000.

• At 1:01 p.m. on Monday, Ian Bennett, 21, Indianapolis, was westbound on County Road 800 North in a 2018 Peterbilt 330 armored truck registered to Gardaworld.

Deputy Derek Tomaw reported that the dashboard cam as well as skid marks on the road indicated that Bennett was westbound when he began to drift off the side of the road. He attempted to correct, but the vehicle left the north side of the road, where it entered the ditch and rolled, ultimately coming to rest on its side facing east.

Bennett was transported from the scene with a head injury. Meanwhile his passenger, 31-year-old Tia Montgomery of Indianapolis, suffered a shoulder/upper arm injury, and was also transported from the scene.

A supervisor from Garda as well as a towing service arrived on the scene to transport the vehicle to a location of the company’s choosing.

Tomaw, who was assisted at the scene by Cpl. Helmer, estimated damage at $50,000-$100,000.

City Fire

Thee Greencastle Fire Department responded to a pair of recent dispatches.

• At 3:19 p.m. on Monday, GFD received a phone call at the firehouse of an illegal burn at 122 W. Berry St. Crews arrived on scene and located the fire in the homeowner’s back yard. The smoke from the fire was considered a nuisance, and the homeowner was asked to extinguish it. They returned to service at 3:44 p.m.

• At 10:24 p.m. on Tuesday, firefighters were dispatched to an outside fire near the railroad tracks at 612 N. Madison St. They arrived to find a small trash fire, which they extinguished, returning to service at 10:37 p.m.

GFD units also responded to four medical assists as well as twice being disregarded en route to calls.

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.

Questions about listed charging information should be directed to the arresting agency.