INDIANAPOLIS – A federal grand jury in Indianapolis, returned a five-count superseding indictment late yesterday charging a former New Castle, Indiana, police officer with excessive force and obstruction of justice, and a former Henry County, Indiana, Reserve Sheriff’s Deputy with obstruction of justice.
Former New Castle, Indiana, Police Lieutenant Aaron Strong is charged in the Superseding Indictment with three civil rights violations for allegedly using unreasonable force against an arrestee and against two other people in custody, and with one count of obstruction of justice. Strong was previously indicted and the superseding indictment added no new charges against him.
Today’s superseding indictment added one count of witness tampering against former Henry County, Indiana, Reserve Sheriff’s Deputy Adam Guy, 25. According to the superseding indictment, Guy engaged in misleading conduct toward another person with the intent to interfere with the investigation of one of the incidents for which Strong is charged with using unreasonable force.
Each of the civil rights charges in the superseding indictment carries a statutory maximum penalty of 10 years of imprisonment, and each obstruction of justice charge carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years of imprisonment. If either defendant is convicted, the actual sentence will be determined by a district judge.
Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, and Special Agent in Charge Herbert Stapleton for the FBI’s Indianapolis Field Division made the announcement.
The FBI Indianapolis Field Office investigated the case.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Peter Blackett and Trial Attorney Alec Ward of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division who are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.