Wells Superior Court
Criminal Cases
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Robby W. Middleton, 56, Ossian, charged with operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalency of .15 percent or more with a prior conviction for the same offense, operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, and operating a motor vehicle after having been found to be an habitual traffic violator, all Level 6 felonies; open alcoholic beverage container during operation of a motor vehicle and operating a motor vehicle with a false and/or fictitious license plate,both Class C infractions. Bond continued at $5,000.
On Sept. 16, Ossian Police and Wells County EMS responded to a report of a man asleep behind the wheel of a Chevrolet sport utility vehicle in the drive-through of the Ossian Subway restaurant.
A Subway employee had asked Middleton to wait before ordering at the drive-through menu board as she was assisting another customer. When she got back with Middleton, he wasn’t responding — despite repeated attempts by the employee to get Middleton to give her his order. A customer then came into the dining area of the restaurant and advised there was a man asleep in a vehicle at the drive-through menu board. The employee went outside to check and discovered Middleton asleep.
Medics checked out Middleton and he was cleared for field sobriety tests, which the officer performed. Middleton reportedly failed field sobriety tests, admitted having drank alcohol, smelled of alcohol, and tested .201 percent alcohol concentration equivalency on a certified breath test administered at the Wells County Jail.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Joshua Alan Brigner, 31, Bluffton, charged with operating a vehicle with an alcohol concentration equivalency of .15 percent or more and operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, both Class A misdemeanor; and improper or no license plate light and/or taillight.
While patrolling Main Street at Elm Street Sept. 17, a Bluffton police officer saw a vehicle turn from Washington onto Main. The officer observed that the vehicle did not have a lit license plate light. The officer fell in behind the vehicle which reportedly made a quick right turn onto Perry then an equally quick turn left onto Scott Street then turned onto Wabash Street and pulled into the driveway of a residence.
As the officer spoke with Brigner, he reportedly admitted he was coming from a local bar and had been drinking “plenty.”
He reportedly appeared intoxicated, smelled of alcohol, failed field sobriety tests and blew a .187 percent alcohol concentration equivalency on a certified breath test at the Wells County Jail.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Jordan Edward Gaunt, 34, Decatur, charged with driving while suspended with a prior conviction for the same offense, a Class A misdemeanor. Allison Sprunger appointed public defender.
On Sept. 16, a sheriff’s deputy pulled over a 2010 Chevrolet Malibu Gaunt was driving on Ind. 116 near 300E after observing the passenger side headlight was out. Gaunt allegedly admitted knowing his license was suspended but that it was eligible for reinstatement, he had just not done it yet.
The deputy observed in his report that in reality, Gaunt’s license had two suspensions against it and was suspended indefinitely from convictions Oct. 30, 2014, and May 11, 2016.
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Stephen R. Steinhausen Jr., 48, Bluffton, pleaded guilty to public intoxication, a Class B misdemeanor.
Sentenced to 30 days in the Wells County Jail and assessed court costs of $185.
Steinhausen was riding a bicycle on Main Street when he reportedly fell off of it at the Spring Street intersection Sept. 16. Two men reportedly dragged him out of the roadway.
Steinhausen reportedly appeared intoxicated, smelled of alcohol and blew a .143 percent alcohol concentration equivalency on a Breathalyzer test.
Steinhausen also reportedly had active warrants for his arrest out of Brown County, Wisconsin, on charges of violating a court order, obstructing a court order and disorderly conduct. The charges had been filed Feb. 1.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Austin M. Voss, 28, Alexandria, charged with three counts of plain, ordinary stalking, a Level 6 felony. Bond continued at $5,000 surety only.
Voss is charged with stalking a former girlfriend in Bluffton this past August.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Sevada Palmore, 47, South Bend, charged with auto theft, a Level 6 felony, and theft, a Class A misdemeanor. Released on her own recognizance. Pauper status denied.
A Bluffton man reported July 31 that he was getting ready to leave for work at 11:04 p.m. when he came outside and noticed his 2012 red Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle was gone. He noted that he had left the vehicle unlocked and the keys in the vehicle.
Palmore had been a patient at the Praxis substance abuse treatment facility on West Lancaster Street but had been dismissed from the facility due to getting into a fight. She had walked to the Pak-A-Sak convenience store on West Wabash Street. There a welfare check had been called into police for Palmore who was reportedly behaving strangely. Palmore apparently was “de-toxing” and was eventually taken to Bluffton Regional Medical Center where she was informed that the wait would be one to two hours because the staff was busy with more emergent patients. Palmore asked to be taken to South Bend but was informed by the officer who took her to BRMC that was not an option.
At some point Palmore reportedly left the hospital and was last seen walking in the area of Bennett Street and Wiley Avenue, which is the approximate location of where the sport utility vehicle was stolen. Reportedly Palmore was asking people for a ride to South Bend.
Since Palmore became an immediate suspect, the investigating officer contacted the South Bend police for assistance in locating her and the vehicle. That was accomplished Aug. 1 when a South Bend police officer spotted Palmore standing next to the vehicle at her residence. Palmore denied taking the vehicle and claimed she had been dropped off by someone from Bluffton who had left the vehicle with her. She was taken into custody and the vehicle was impounded.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Megan Renee Eisaman, 29, Bluffton, charged with possession of marijuana, a Class A misdemeanor. Bond continued at $1,500. Jeffrey Stineburg appointed public defender.
On Oct. 1, 2020, a sheriff’s deputy pulled over a 2003 Toyota Camry after noticing that it failed to signal a turn in an adequate amount of time before making the turn. Eisaman was a passenger. The deputy observed in his report that Eisaman and the driver were known to him to be involved in illegal drug activity in Bluffton.
The deputy got his K-9 partner and performed a free-air search around the vehicle. The dog alerted on the vehicle and the deputy asked the two women about the dog alerting. The deputy was given permission to search the bvehicle and allegedly found a small plastic container for King Tut “pre-rolls” — marijuana cigarettes. Inside were reportedly three marijuana cigarettes. The plastic container was inside a backpack that Eisaman allegedly admitted was hers.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Earl W. Quinn, 51, Bluffton, charged with two counts of invasion of privacy, both Class A misdemeanors. Allison Sprunger appointed public defender.
Quinn is charged with using a telephone at the Wells County Jail to try and contact a protected party Sept. 1. He also reportedly tried to send the woman a text message.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Chit Too, 18, Fort Wayne, charged with knowingly or intentionally operating a motor vehicle while never having been issued a driver’s license, a Class C misdemeanor. Jeffrey Stineburg appointed public defender.
Too was pulled over by a Bluffton police officer monitoring traffic on West Lancaster Street after the officer clocked the speed of the vehicle Too was driving at 51 mph-35 zone. Too possessed no forms of identification and allegedly admitted he had never been issued a driver’s license.
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Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Ra Tee Par, 25, Fort Wayne, charged with knowingly or intentionally operating a motor vehicle while never having been issued a driver’s license, a Class C misdemeanor, and operating a motor vehicle without insurance, a Class A infraction. Larry Mock appointed public defender.
On Sept. 15, while monitoring traffic on West LaFever Street during the annual Ossian Days street festival, an Ossian police officer spotted Toyota Corolla eastbound on LaFever and turn south on Jefferson Street. The officer decided to perform a license plate check and discovered that the registered owner, Par, had a suspended driver’s license.
The officer followed the Corolla out of town and pulled it over on Ind. 1 at U.S. 224. He then discovered that Par had never been issued a driver’s license. She allegedly admitted to the officer that she did not have a license because she could not pass the driving test.
Wells Circuit Court
Criminal Cases
Preliminary plea of not guilty entered for Adam Matthew Laux, 44, rural Monroe, charged with dealing in methamphetamine, a Level 3 felony; possession of a narcotic drug, a Level 6 felony; and possession of drug paraphernalia, a Class C misdemeanor. Bond continued at $25,500.
On Sept. 16, Bluffton police received a tip that Laux was at a Bluffton residence. He reportedly had active warrants for his arrest out of both Adams County and out of Montgomery County, Ohio, for drug offenses.
Officers responded to the residence and reportedly located Laux sitting on a swing on the front porch. He was taken into custody without insicent.
Allegedly he had a small black plastic case tucked into one of the back pockets of his pants, Inside the case were a glass pipe with burned residue inside, a digital scale, two clear plastic bags with a white crystalline substance, one clear large sandwich-type plastic bag with a red substance inside and and multiple used clear plastic bags. The crystalline substance allegedly field tested positive for methamphetamine. The red substance field tested positive for heroin.
The person who tipped off police reported that Laux was bringing methamphetamine from Ohio to sell in Bluffton. The two plastic bags of the substance identified as methamphetamine are known by the slang term of “eight-ball,”
Marriage Licenses
Jody Allen Kraatz, 49, rural Ossian, and Norma Jean Miller, 44, rural Ossian.
Devin Matthew Gray, 25, Ossian, and Samantha Kay Betz, 24, Ossian.
