Putnam Scanner for June 1, 2018

Thursday, May 31, 2018

County Jail

Nine people were booked in the Putnam County Jail recently.

Wednesday

• At 10:05 a.m. Karen Marie Goodman, 53, Avon, was lodged at the jail on a local traffic warrant.

• At 4:20 a.m. Victoria Lynne Wyatt, 23, Indianapolis, was taken into custody on a local warrant.

• At 3:01 a.m. Tara Marie Thompson, 35, Cloverdale, was housed at the jail on a local warrant.

• At 2:55 a.m. Christopher Scott Horn, 44, Indianapolis, was booked in on a local warrant.

Tuesday

• At 4:43 p.m. Britany Shane Alexander, 35, Carlisle, was lodged at the jail on a local warrant.

• At 4:01 p.m. Josh Andrew Mitchell, 22, Greencastle, was taken into custody on a local warrant.

• At 1:39 p.m. Jacob Michael Alexander, 25, Fairland, was housed at the jail on a pair of local warrants.

• At 10:22 a.m. Andre Dionte Clark, 23, Plainfield, was booked in on a local warrant.

• At 4:20 a.m. Victoria Lynne Wyatt, 23, Indianapolis, was lodged at the jail on a local warrant.

City Police

One summons and five citations were issued in recent activity by the Greencastle City Police Department.

• At 9:01 p.m. Sunday, Christy Branagin, 42, Greencastle, was issued a summons by Officer Zach Rhine.

Branagin was detained on College Avenue near Liberty Street and given a summons for possession of a synthetic or lookalike drug.

Five recent citations were issued by GPD officers.

• At 5:26 p.m. Tuesday, Brihanna Pearson, 21, Greencastle, was cited by Officer Nick Eastham.

Stopped at Vine and Poplar streets, Pearson was cited for driving with a suspended license.

• At 3:37 p.m. Tuesday, Levi Hoffman, 22, Corruna, Ind., was ticketed for speeding on Shadowlawn Avenue near Greenwood Avenue.

Hoffman was cited by Officer Eastham for 49 mph in a 30-mph zone.

• At 10:50 a.m. Tuesday, Kari Chastain, 24, Cloverdale, was cited by Officer Eastham.

Stopped on Indianapolis Road near Calbert Way, Chastain was ticketed for operating with an expired license plate.

• At 8:05 p.m. Monday, Shawna Martin, 40, Greencastle, was ticketed by Officer Rhine.

Martin, who was cited for driving with a suspended license, was stopped at Indianapolis Road and Judson Drive.

• At 1:51 a.m. Sunday, Desiree Gibson, 33, Greencastle, was cited by Officer Luke Brown.

Stopped on North Jackson Street near Frazier Street, Gibson was ticketed for having no operator’s license.

Sheriff’s Department

Putnam County sheriff’s deputies investigated five recent property-damage accidents.

• At 10:22 p.m. on Tuesday, Traci K. Nesbit, 49, Rockville, was westbound on U.S. 36 in a 2018 Ford Fusion when she hit a deer.

Nesbit complained of chest pain following the crash. She was treated by Operation Life before being transported to Hendricks Regional Hospital.

Deputy Robert Soilleux estimated damage at $10,000-$25,000.

• At 7:57 p.m. on Monday, Deputy Soilleux was dispatched to a single-vehicle crash on County Road 200 West.

Witnesses told Soilleux they could see a car northbound on County Road 200 West in a cloud of dust and then saw that the same car had crashed into a tree. They also said one of the three males in the vehicle asked to use their phone to call for a ride rather than calling first-responders.

The witnesses also said they saw one of the young men throw objects into the tree line after exiting the vehicle and before responders arrived. Due to thick undergrowth, none of the objects were found.

According to the two passengers — Zach Johnson, 19, Rockville, and William R. Eubank, 26, Russellville — they had just left the Oakalla Bridge area and were traveling northbound at a high rate of speed on 200 West, like they “normally do,” letting the vehicle drift in the gravel, when they hit the tree.

The driver of the 2000 Buick Century, Zachary A. Nichols, 19, Greencastle, said he did not remember what happened, saying, “I just remember parking the car.”

Soilleux said all three smelled strongly of alcohol and all three admitted to consuming alcohol.

All three were treated by medics at the scene, with Nichols and Eubank transported to Terre Haute Regional Hospital for treatment.

While inventorying the vehicle, Soilleux also found a glass pipe with black residue inside. Johnson told him it would test positive for marijuana. He told Soilleux that he and Nichols smoke marijuana but had not done so that day.

Johnson said he did not know to whom the pipe belonged.

Chemical tests were pending at the time of Soilleux’s report, but Nichols was preliminarily charged with driving while intoxicated, being a minor in consumption of an alcoholic beverage, possession of paraphernalia and speed greater than reasonable under conditions.

The car was towed. Damage was estimated at $1,000-$2,500.

• At 4:30 p.m. on Monday, Joseph A. Fitzpatrick, 48, Greencastle, was westbound on U.S. 40 in a 2016 Chevrolet Silverado when he hit a deer.

Deputy Soilleux estimated damage at $1,000-$2,500.

• At 11:45 a.m. on Sunday, George C. Compton, 32, Terre Haute, was northbound on U.S. 231 just south of Plessinger Hill in a 2017 Dodge Caravan.

Compton told Lt. Donnie Pettit his attention was diverted to inside the vehicle, which caused him to travel off the east side of the road and hit the end of a guardrail.

The van rotated clockwise off the end of the guardrail and came to rest in the northbound lane facing southwest.

Compton was treated at the scene for a minor elbow injury.

Damage was estimated at $5,000-$10,000. The van was towed.

• At 8:23 p.m. on Thursday, May 24, Stachia R. Thomas, 24, Greencastle, was northbound on County Road 300 East in a 1999 Dodge Caravan.

She told Capt. Tom Helmer she was unfamiliar with the road, as she is new to the area. She was trying to find an alternate route, with U.S. 231 closed following a major accident.

Thomas’s right front wheel left the travel portion of the road. There is no shoulder in the area, and her wheel dropped about one foot, causing her frame and suspension to drag. The van then hit a gravel driveway, causing it to go airborne.

The vehicle then traveled down an embankment, hitting trees and a fence.

A witness who was traveling southbound told Helmer she believed Thomas had been looking at a device in her hand at the time of the crash.

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

• At 7:12 a.m. on Monday, May 21, Ian T. Young, 18, Indianapolis, was southbound on U.S. 231 just south of U.S. 40 in a 1994 Ford Ranger. Nancy Collins, 54, Greencastle, was in front of him, also southbound in a 2012 Honda Pilot.

Several vehicles were slowing in front of Young and Collins due to a school bus stopped for a left turn into the rear entrance of South Putnam High School.

Young told Lt. Pettit he has an issue with his brakes and could not stop in time to avoid rear-ending Collins’ vehicle.

Both vehicles were towed. Damage was estimated at $5,000-$10,000.

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.

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