Former reserve deputy to plead guilty to federal misdemeanors
A former Putnam County Sheriff's Department reserve deputy will not face a jury trial on federal perjury charges.
Instead, Andrew "Mo" Fenwick of Greencastle will plead guilty to a pair of misdemeanor charges of acting as an accessory after the fact to deprivation of civil rights under color of law, the United States District Attorney's office confirmed on Monday.
Fenwick, 24, was arrested in April on three felony counts of perjury, accused of making false declarations before a grand jury.
The grand jury testimony was regarding the federal case against former Putnam County Deputy Terry "T.J." Smith, who was arrested in March on four police brutality counts.
Smith was subsequently found guilty of two of the four charges during a September trial. Smith's sentencing hearing in U.S. District Court in Terre Haute is set for 1:30 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 4 .
Under terms of the plea agreement, Fenwick will be charged with only two misdemeanors, rather than three felonies, greatly reducing the sentence.
The agreement, which must still be accepted by the judge, would sentence Fenwick to 12 months of probation, with the first six on monitored home detention. A fine could also be imposed by the court.
Each felony charge could have carried a sentence of up to five years imprisonment.
Another specific provision of the agreement is that Fenwick agrees to never again seek commission as a law enforcement officer or correctional officer in Indiana or elsewhere in the United States.
If the judge were to reject the agreement, Fenwick could withdraw his guilty plea.
The original indictment alleged that Fenwick provided material false statements with respect to:
-- The degree to which Fenwick used force to assist Smith in the apprehension of an individual near Moore's Bar in Greencastle on Nov. 6, 2011;
-- Whether Fenwick had seen a police report prepared by Smith concerning Smith's use of force against another individual at the Cloverdale Truck Stop on Dec. 28, 2013, and;
-- Whether the victim of Smith's use of force at the Cloverdale Truck Stop had struck Fenwick with a closed first before Smith used physical force against the individual.
Plea agreement documents make no reference to the alleged perjury. Instead, Fenwick simply acknowledges in the agreement that he knew Smith had committed the crime and that he assisted in preventing Smith's trial or punishment.
Fenwick's jury trial had been scheduled for Monday, Dec. 1.
No sentencing date has been set for Fenwick, the son of outgoing Putnam County Sheriff Steve Fenwick.