Land moves for dismissal

Friday, April 23, 2010

GREENCASTLE -- A Greencastle man accused of battering his mother last May has filed a motion for release from custody and dismissal of all charges.

Seth Land, 22, is charged in Putnam County Circuit Court with two counts of Class B felony aggravated battery, each punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison.

Although he is represented by a lawyer, court documents indicated that Land had filed the motion pro se, or without representation.

According to court records, Land's attorney, James Recker, will pursue a defense of mental disease or defect in Land's case.

Land allegedly beat his mother, Sharon Land, so severely that she was taken to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis, where she underwent surgery. The incident is alleged to have happened on May 15, 2009.

Police reports said Sharon Land suffered injuries including a severely bruised and torn right eye socket, a swollen left eye, split lips and broken teeth. She also lost an eye.

The alleged assault took place at Sharon Land's home. Police responded to a 911 call and found her lying on her bedroom floor, court documents said. Seth Land admitted to officers at the scene that he and his mother had gotten into a fight.

Police reports said Land had suffered in the past from schizophrenia and other mental illnesses.

A pretrial conference for Land was originally set for July 9, 2009, but both parties notified the court that more discovery time was necessary. Another court date has not yet been set.

Land was formally charged in Putnam County Circuit Court on May 18, 2009.

Per the request of Putnam County Prosecutor Tim Bookwalter, Land's bond was set at $100,000 cash only.

While he was in Putnam County Jail, Land was segregated from other inmates. Because of his past erratic behavior and the amount of care he requires, Judge Matthew Headley accommodated a request by Bookwalter to have Land sent to an Indiana Department of Correction facility to await his next court date.

Land also has several charges pending against him in Wayne County.

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  • Cold.

    -- Posted by Xgamer on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 5:55 AM
  • This is obviously a comment made by someone that does not know my son or myself. However, if this person is up at 116 in the morning to write a comment like that, who may be what they stated? I believe they should probably read some of my son's writings, and they will realize what really happened here and who has covered it up. I will open his file if that is what needs done to stop these adults from doing what they do.

    -- Posted by HisMother on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 7:58 AM
  • People need to know the whole story before making judgement, Seth has a mental illness, this does not make an excuse for what he did to his mom, however he is a good kid who has suffered for many yrs from this illness, Sharon has gone above and beyond to help him, as she should do being his mother, Seth needs help!I hope Seth is getting and will continue to get the help he needs, Mental illness affects a large amount of people it is not something to be taken lightly.. Good Luck Sharon...

    -- Posted by NPmom66 on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 8:19 AM
  • I too hope this young man gets the help he needs and deserves. The solution is not always to through them in jail and forget about them. Who does that serve? No one, not the family, not the community and certainly not this kid. Because he will get out one day and without help could possibly harm someone else. He needs to be somewhere that can address his mental health issues.

    -- Posted by dcsaiht on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 9:37 AM
  • FIRST OFF LET ME JUST SAY HOW SMART THIS YOUNG MAN MUST BE OBVIOUSLY, TO HAVE BEEN ABLE TO FILE ON HIS OWN BEHLAF, DOES THIS SOUND LIKE A MAN WHO IS CRAZY??? I THINK NOT, I THINK THIS MAN CAN PROVE HE HAS MENTAL ILLNESSES AND MEDICATED HE COULD BE OUR NEXT PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES AT LEAST HE IS AN AMERICAN CITIZEN...I COMMEND SHARON FOR NOT GIVING UP ON HER CHILD HE IS DEFINATELY WORTH FIGHTING FOR , MAYBE IF THE STATE OF INDIANA WOULD HAVE GIVEN HIM HIS MEDICATION IN THE FIRST PLACE AND NOT HAVE SHUT DOWN ALL THE MENTAL FACILITIES THERE WOULD BE A WAY TO HELP PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY NEED HELP, THE LORD IS OUR SHEPHERD, LET US NOT FORGET AMEN

    -- Posted by ironmaiden on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 9:54 AM
  • I'm glad that got deleted.

    -- Posted by Xgamer on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 12:46 PM
  • God be with Sharon,follow your heart.

    -- Posted by obeone on Sat, Apr 24, 2010, at 2:06 PM
  • Thank you all for your support. Mental illness is something that requires many people and resources working together to find what works. I have faith that with the power of prayer, doctors, family, and friends, that Seth will get another chance at successful rehabilitation and resources that will work for him. I know that the Good Lord has got this one :)

    -- Posted by HisMother on Sun, Apr 25, 2010, at 1:42 PM
  • I went to school with Seth. Though I didn't get along well with Seth, he was always a good kid. Always smiled a lot. A bit of a prankster, but never anything hurtful and harming to others. He had a rough edge, but then, what normal teenager doesn't? This outburst that occurred last May, I feel, was the result of the compounding and growing stresses of our society compiled onto an eccentric mental behavior (by no fault of Seth). The end result is a lapse in judgment, and even a black-out where any otherwise normally operating mind would lose all sense of judgment, and memory of personal relations and memories attached to those relations.

    I, for one, choose to see both sides of a story rather than the grim "this is the way it is" portrayed by a ratings-craved elementary level journalist and the lacking critical support of his or her publisher. The lack of psychological thinking and TRUE journalism for this story (and many stories in Putnam County) is a major disappointment to me. I am disgusted.

    -- Posted by torninfinity87 on Sun, Apr 25, 2010, at 8:32 PM
  • When looking at the bigger picture one must ask serious questions. Can any doctor, psychologist or psychiatrist unequivocally guarantee that the underlying mental illness can be cured or controlled by medication. Many people want to blame society for the situations that they find themselves in as individuals but yet won't accept what society determines is the best way to protect society from non conforming individuals. Kudos for Mothers supporting their children. In this recent event it cost an eye. What next? How much is society willing to pay or give up so that this young man can realize his full potential?

    -- Posted by exhoosier2 on Mon, Apr 26, 2010, at 7:38 AM
  • Some need to realize that Seth has a mental illness. Schizophrenia is treated with medication and the proper adherence to that medication can virtually eliminate those symptoms of schziophrenia. People need to step back and think about living a life every single day with someone in your head telling you to end it or that you aren't worth it or she isn't worth it kill her. It's extremely intense and sometimes unbearable. People do what the voices tell them to do because they think the voices will go away only to find out the next morning they are back. Yes, he should pay the price for what he did because if you let one off the hook and not give the sentence due what are you going to do for the next schizophrenic who commits a comparable crime? People also need to realize that at a few of the correctional facilities such as Wabash Valley Correctional Facility in Carlisle, they have a special unit for people with what is called an Axis I diagnosis, such as schizophrenia. Offenders go through intense group and individual therapy with Psychiatrists and Psychologists. Their medication is regulated in an environment where they can be monitored 24 hours a day just in-case they medications aren't working and the schizophrenia is not under control. I have been inside this facility and saw how they work with the schizophrenics and it's somewhat amazing. There are trained psychiatric personelle there 24 hours a day in the event of an outburst or any other thing the psychiatric patient needs. There is help out there for Seth that allows him to serve his time for what he did. There are people out there that can help rehabilitate him and help figure out his medications and what works the best for Seth again while serving the sentence he is going to be given.

    -- Posted by collegegirl2008 on Tue, Apr 27, 2010, at 7:42 PM
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