Putnam Scanner for August 14, 2018

Monday, August 13, 2018

County Jail

Five people were booked in the Putnam County Jail recently.

Monday

• At 12:12 a.m. John Edward Sanders, 67, Coatesville, was lodged at the jail for driving while intoxicated with a prior conviction and driving with a BAC of .08 or more.

Sunday

• At 10:37 p.m. Joseph Bradley Payton, 22, Greencastle, was taken into custody on a pair of local warrants.

• At 5 p.m. Joshua Kenneth Mathis, 27, Indianapolis, was housed at the jail on a local warrant.

• At 1:36 a.m. Junior Dale Key, 31, Bloomington, was booked in for driving while intoxicated and driving with a suspended license.

Friday

• At 10:04 a.m. Christopher Todd Smith, 26, Greencastle, was taken into custody for criminal trespass.

City Police

One recent arrest was reported by Greencastle City Police officers.

• At 1:45 p.m. Friday Cory Edward Smith, 33, Greencastle, was arrested at Charlie’s on Bloomington Street for theft.

The theft of a girl’s BMX-style bicycle, valued at $1,500, had been reported to city officers earlier in the day by an Ohio Street resident.

Sgt. Chris Jones later spotted Smith on the bicycle at Charlie’s and confronted him as he went inside for food.

Smith was arrested and lodged in the Putnam County Jail.

• At 9:30 p.m. Saturday, Caitlyn Gibson, 25, Greencastle, was issued a summons to appear in court to answer charges of possession of synthetic cannabis and reckless possession of paraphernalia.

Gibson was stopped on East Poplar Street by Capt. Charles Inman.

Sheriff’s Department

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

• At 5:40 p.m. on Sunday, Marideth S. Boswell, 28, Cloverdale, was traveling on County Road 650 East in a 1996 Saturn SL. She told Deputy Robert Soilleux she was lost and driving on the gravel road when her brakes locked up and the vehicle suddenly swerved right and hit a utility pole.

Hendricks Power arrived prior to Soilleux’s arrival and made the scene safe by disabling the power lines and cutting the pole. Boswell said she exited the vehicle and did not notice or come in contact with downed power lines.

Boswell reported a lot of pain to her neck, face, arm, wrist and leg. Her right knee was swollen and purple. However, she refused medical aid and said a friend would her taking her to the hospital.

The car was towed. Damage was estimated at $10,000-$25,000.

• At 4:50 p.m. on Sunday, Jessica A. Ferran, 36, Cloverdale, was eastbound on County Road 1050 South in a 2005 Ford Expedition.

She told Deputy Soilleux that a light gray/silver small SUV was westbound at a high rate of speed and struck her vehicle as it crested a hill in front of Black Hawk Campground. The crash resulted in damage to the driver’s side mirror and minor marks on the driver’s door and window.

Harvey Ferran was eastbound following the victim’s vehicle and saw the crash. He gave the same description of the other vehicle and described the driver as a white, heavy-set male with short, blond hair.

Harvey said the vehicle did not slow or stop, but accelerated westbound from the scene. He said he tried to give chase but lost sight of the vehicle after it ran a stoplight at the intersection of County Road 1050 South and County Road 300 West.

Harvey further said the vehicle was traveling down the center of the road when it crested the hill. He said the suspect vehicle then nearly lost control, leaving the north side of road, but regaining control and continuing west.

Soilleux searched the area but could not find the vehicle.

Occupants of the campground reported seeing the same vehicle in the area at about the same time of day, driving recklessly and normally heading west.

Neither Jessica Ferran nor her three children were injured.

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

• At 7:54 a.m. on Sunday, Austin K. Souders, 17, Greencastle, was northbound on County Road 150 West, approaching County Road 300 South in a 2004 Honda Civic, when he left the road and hit a parked 1997 Chevrolet pickup at 3022 S. CR 150 West.

Souders told Deputy Brian Helmer he had fallen asleep and when he woke up, he was spinning out of control.

Souders’ vehicle, sustained heavy damage and had to be towed. The parked pickup, registered to Carl Horton of Zionsville, did not need to be towed.

Both Souders and his passenger said they were OK and did not need medical attention.

Helmer noted that Souders’ eyes were glassy and a little bloodshot. Helmer asked if he had been drinking and Souders said he had one beer, three hours earlier.

Souders then failed a field sobriety test and submitted to a portable breath test, which showed a result of .023 blood-alcohol content.

Helmer issued a citation for driver under age 21 with a BAC of at least .02, as well as a summons for minor in consumption of alcohol.

Damage was estimated at $10,000-$25,000.

• At 5:35 a.m. on Saturday, James E. Gochanour, 42, Brazil, was northbound on County Road 150 West, just west of County Road 300 South, in a 1998 Chevrolet Malibu when a deer entered the road.

Gochanour told Deputy Matt Biggs he swerved to miss the animal and left the east side of the road, coming to rest in a ditch.

Gochanour complained of back pain and was transported to St. Vincent Clay Hospital in Brazil.

The only damage to the vehicle was a minor scratch to the passenger side door, which was estimated at less than $1,000.

• At 9:30 a.m. on Friday, David L. Smith, 52, Brazil, was eastbound on U.S. 40 near County Road 450 West in a 2014 Ford Fiesta when he hit a deer.

Deputy Soilleux estimated damage 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.