Daviess County Sheriff Chief Deputy indicted by Grand Jury www.privateofficer.com

 

WASHINGTON IN Oct 30 2011 — A grand jury Friday indicted Daviess County Sheriff Chief Deputy Ronald “Ron” Wayne Morgan, 47, of Washington, on charges of bribery and assisting a criminal, both Class C felonies.

Morgan was arrested by Indiana State Police at approximately 4:30 p.m. Friday after turning himself in at the Daviess County Security Center. He was later released after posting 10 percent of a $7,500 bond.

ISP Detective Brad Chandler initiated a criminal investigation Sept. 13, following an allegation of official misconduct by Morgan. The allegation surfaced during an earlier drug investigation by the sheriff’s department when, on Sept. 6, deputies served a search warrant for the home of a 29-year-old Washington woman suspected of manufacturing methamphetamine.

According to an ISP news release, during the investigation they received information indicating the female had been able to avoid arrest in the past because she’d been tipped off by Morgan, who allegedly asked her to perform sexual favors with him in return for his ability to protect her from arrest. Further investigation revealed Morgan allegedly shared privileged information with her on several occasions between August 2005 and July 2009 in exchange for sexual favors. The woman’s name is not being released because she’s considered a witness in the ongoing investigation.

Vanderburgh County Special Prosecutor Stan Levco presented the case to the grand jury.

ISP currently is releasing no further information about the case, and Sheriff Jerry Harbstreit had little comment.

“We left it up to the grand jury,” Harbstreit said. “We’ll go from there, I guess.”

Morgan was placed on paid administrative leave Sept. 7 and relieved of all command and police powers pending completion of the investigation. Harbstreit, who was not a part of the investigation or grand jury proceedings, said he has a call in to sheriff’s attorney Howard Williams of South Bend to determine how the department must proceed at this point. He said he and Williams will review the situation and determine what needs to be done.

A person answering the phone at Morgan’s residence refused comment Friday evening.

A Class C felony carries a sentence of two to eight years.

Source:washington times-herald.com