Couch pleads guilty; sentencing set for September

Friday, July 16, 2010

GREENCASTLE -- One of four co-defendants allegedly involved in an April shooting incident has pled guilty to two of the five charges against her.

Lacey Ann Couch, 24, of Greencastle has been charged with Class C felonies assisting a criminal and Class D felonies receiving stolen property, resisting law enforcement, criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and neglect of a dependent.

Couch pled guilty to the resisting and neglect charges, which are each punishable by up to three years in prison. If the court accepts the terms of the plea agreement that has been presented, the other charges against Couch will be dropped.

Judge Matthew Headley set Couch's sentencing for Sept. 9.

Couch was arrested on April 8, and has been in jail since. Her bond was set at $20,000 with 10 percent allowed.

Couch's co-defendants are Justin Hargrove, 24, of Greencastle and Keven Crowe, 19 and Michael Pryor, 18, both of Coatesville.

Hargrove is charged with attempted murder and criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon; Pryor and Crowe are charged with criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, assisting a criminal and receiving stolen property. All three remain in jail and are set for final pretrial conferences on Aug. 19 and jury trials on Sept. 8.

On April 5, several calls reporting shots fired in the area of Walnut Street in Greencastle came into Putnam County Dispatch just before 2 a.m. One caller was able to give dispatchers a description of the car from which the shots were being fired.

Just after 2 a.m., Putnam County Sheriff's Department Reserve Deputy Matt Biggs saw a vehicle matching the description of the shooter's vehicle at the intersection of Bloomington and Washington streets. Biggs began driving behind the vehicle and attempted to make a traffic stop at the intersection of Franklin and Durham streets.

At that point, court records alleged Hargrove exited the vehicle and fired approximately two or three rounds at Biggs' police vehicle. One round struck the police vehicle's hood and ricocheted into the windshield.

Biggs was not injured.

Couch was the driver of the vehicle used in the incident.

A manhunt ensued for the shooters, and Greencastle Schools were closed for the day.

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  • Everyone should pray for this girl. I am in no way condoning what she did, but I know this woman's mother and to say she was an okay role model for her daughter is a complete understatement. She was more than likely easily influenced by these boys, which still doesn't make what she did right by any means. Hopefully when she gets out of prison she will turn her life around and be nothing like her mother and be a much better role model for her young child.

    -- Posted by GcastleBites01 on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 4:52 AM
  • Gcastlebites01, you're making the assumption she will go to prison?

    -- Posted by exhoosier2 on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 7:09 AM
  • I'm making the assumption she will go to prison, because that is where she belongs! You play with fire, your gonna get burned!!!! She needs to sit for a few years, think about what she has done, turn her life around so that she can fit into society and learn from her mistakes!!!! She should have thought before she acted!!!!!!! But the way it is in Putman Co, she'll just get a slap on the wrist, wear one of those worthless ankle bracelets and not learn her lesson!

    -- Posted by clgruener on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 9:24 AM
  • @ exhoosier2...Yes, she will more than likely go to prison since she's pleading to 2 felonies. Also, due to the severity of the crime that was committed while she was driving, it's pretty much common sense.

    -- Posted by GcastleBites01 on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 12:44 PM
  • "DO THE CRIME PAY THE TIME....."

    NOW LETS HOPE THEY DO NOT LET ANY OF THESE CREEPS GET AWAY WITH ANY LIGHTER SENTENCE....SMACK THEM WITH THE MOST TIME ALLOWED... PERIOD....

    -- Posted by takeastand on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 1:02 PM
  • I hope the terms of her plea agreement require her to testify on State's behalf against the others.

    -- Posted by Geologist on Fri, Jul 16, 2010, at 4:24 PM
  • I would like to respond to the comments made by GcastleBites01. It is extremely obvious that you really don't know anything about Laceys mother or Laceys upbringing. What is going on in Lacey's life now is completly by her choices and the choices of the loosers that she associates with in her life. It is in no way a reflection of what she was taught, brought up around nor has it ever been nor ever will be condoned by her mother.

    Your obviously ignorant to any truthful knowledge about Laceys mother or you would know that she learned absolutly none of what she is doing now from her mother or her suroundings. Lacey's mother does not do drugs, has drank once in the past 10 years, has missed one day of work in her past 15 years of employment history (the day Lacey was arrested) and has had one ticket her entire life. Lacey's mothers life consists of work, working around the house and spoling her 5 grandchildren.

    Lacey's mother also does NOT condone any of what she has done and feels that Lacey deserves to pay what ever punishment our legal system feels is equal and deserving to the crimes she has comitted in and on this community,no mater what the length of the punishment may be.

    Had her mother known anything about the conditions that her granddaughter was being exposed to SHE would have called the authorities herself rather then turning a blind eye as others involved in this situation have done to protect their own adult siblings.

    Lacey is in the situation she is in becuase of the path she has choosen and the idiot loosers she associates with and her mother feels she must now pay for those decisions.

    So GcastleBites01, before you write anymore ignorant comments about Lacey's mother, maybe you should actually LEARN something about Lacey's mother first hand.

    -- Posted by Brunerstown1 on Sun, Jul 18, 2010, at 10:25 AM
  • Brunerstown1----You should use your spell checker.

    YOU ARE-----NOT YOUR

    LOSER-------NOT LOOSER

    MATTER------NOT MATER

    -- Posted by sierrabloom on Mon, Jul 19, 2010, at 10:19 AM
  • Can't we all just get along?

    -- Posted by 1stamendrights on Wed, Jul 21, 2010, at 9:35 PM
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