Truck Driver Killed in LaPorte County Crash
A truck driver from Olympia Fields, Ill. is dead and a Valparaiso man is in jail after an early morning crash on I-94 in LaPorte County that shut the highway down for about two hours. The wreck occurred near the Indiana-Michigan State Line around 2 a.m. Truck driver George A. Leeth, Sr. of Hammond called 911 from his cell phone to report a suspected drunk driver in an Audi station wagon driving erratically with speeds ranging from 25 to 60 miles-per-hour. The driver, Howard B Gutenstein, 47, of Valparaiso, stopped his car in the middle of the highway, got out and started walking around. Leeth stopped, according to state police, put his flashers on and coaxed Gutenstein back into his car. As Leeth was getting back into his truck, another semi hit him, pushing his truck into Gutenstein’s car. The driver of the second truck, Steven Lunn, 52, of Olympia Fields, Ill.hand to be cut from the cab of his truck and was pronounced dead at the scene of massive trauma. Leeth was taken to a Michigan City hospital with non-life threatening injuries. Gutenstein faces a felony charge of operating while intoxicated causing death and a misdemeanor offense of endangering. State troopers say he had a blood alcohol content of .13 percent.
State Police Remind Motorists Not To Drive On Flooded Roads
The WKVI listening area remains under a flood watch until later this evening. That means floods are likely, especially in low-lying areas. Hoosiers who live in flood prone areas should always be conscious of the threat of flash floods when receiving significant rainfall. The Indiana State Police offers a few flood safety tips: Continue reading
Cops Find Four Kids During Meth Raid, Four Adults Arrested
Four Fulton County residents are jailed on multiple felony charges after police reportedly found active meth labs, drugs and paraphernalia in a home with four minor children located next to an elementary school. Officers from the Indiana State Police Peru Post Meth Enforcement Team, Fulton County Sheriffs Department and Rochester Police Department raided a home at 311 Fulton Avenue in Rochester. Continue reading
Plymouth Man Injured after Moped Accident
Police and Coroner Investigate Fatal Accident in Marshall County
The Marshall County Coroner and the Indiana State Police are investigating a fatal accident that occurred in Bremen late Monday morning.
Emergency responders were called to the scene of an accident where it was found that a semi driver drove off the north side of U.S. 6 and into an embankment west of Miami Trail in Bremen.
Drunk Driver Calls 911 to Report Himself
If you can’t call someone to drive you home after you’ve been drinking, calling 911 to report yourself as a drunk driver before harming someone may be the next best thing. That’s what a Logansport man reportedly did early this morning in Jasper County after running off the side of I-65 near the Demotte/Roselawn exit. Matthew Devore, 24, was booked into the Jasper County Jail after testing 0.09 Blood Alcohol Content. He reportedly told the state trooper who arrested him that he was “sick of Indiana, so he decided to go for a drive.”
Marshall County Coroner, ISP Investigating Death of Inmate
Neither violence nor foul play are suspected in the Sunday morning death of an inmate at the Marshall County Correctional Facility in Plymouth. Authorities there say 44-year-old Kerry A. Pinder of Culver had been jailed since early Saturday morning following his arrest by Plymouth Police for operating while intoxicated. He was awaiting release at the time of his death just before 11 a.m. An autopsy is scheduled today. When an inmate in custody dies, the Indiana State Police and coroner are the lead investigators.
Officers Conduct Compliance Sweep of Registered Sex Offenders
“Operation Lost Innocence” was conducted in LaPorte County this week. This is an effort by various local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to check compliance of sex offenders.
Parole officers and investigators from the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Office, Indiana State Police, Michigan City Police and United States Marshals Service verified residency and employment of 87 sex offenders who reside and work in LaPorte County.
Suspect Shot During Police Standoff
A Fulton County man is in serious condition at a Fort Wayne hospital after being shot during a standoff with police. Nicholas S. Westerhoff, 46, was airlifted to Parkview Hospital in Fort Wayne after the incident in the town of Fulton. It started around 8:15 last night with a report of a domestic situation with shots fired at a Brown Street home. Officers found Westerhoff holed up in the residence refusing to come out. The Indiana State Police North Emergency Response Team was called in to secure the area. Several attempts to negotiate with with Westerhoff were unsuccessful. He came to the door of the home around 11:40 p.m. and started firing his weapon, according to police. Officers returned fire, and Westerhoff was injured during the exchange. It’s unclear if his injury was self-inflicted or if he was shot by officers returning fire. No police officers were injured. The incident remains under investigation. Officers from the Indiana State Police, Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, Rochester, Kewanna and Fulton Police Departments responded to the incident, along with the Liberty Township Fire Department and Fulton County EMS.
Firearm Permitting Process Not Sitting Well with Indiana Sheriff’s Association
In an effort to go paperless, beginning in May the Indiana State Police is requiring fingerprinting to be done at a specific location that has a live scan machine to electronically scan fingerprints. These locations are set up throughout the state where a sheriff’s department is not involved in that part of the process. When complete, the fingerprints will electronically be sent to the state via the internet.
Snow Keeps State Troopers Busy
State troopers from the Indiana State Police Lowell Post are staying busy as a result of the snow that fell overnight into the early morning hours. They responded to 26 property damage crashes, 7 personal injury crashes, 30 slide off’s and 10 calls to assist motorists. The Lowell district includes Starke, Pulaski, LaPorte, Porter, Lake, Newton and Jasper Counties. Motorists are reminded to travel cautiously, as roads remain wet, snow-covered and slushy. Slow down and allow plenty of stopping distance.
Changes Made to Handgun Permitting Process
Hoosiers Encouraged to Get Ready for Spring Floods
The National Weather Service, Indiana State Police, Indiana Department of Transportation, and Indiana Department of Homeland Security are encouraging Hoosiers to get ready for potential flooding during Flood Safety Awareness Week, March 18-22.
Indiana State Police Now Accepting Recruit Academy Applications
Applications must be received by email before April 1, 2013 – any applications received after March 31 will not be accepted.
Four Suspects Have Yet to Appear in Court on Meth Charges
Jordan Bunton, Kim Frazier, Adam Wagers, and Dianna Watson were arrested on Thursday, March 7 after officers from the Plymouth Police Department, Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police executed a search warrant at 1008 Plum Street.
Plymouth warrant search yields multiple meth labs, four arrests
Four people are jailed in Marshall County after police there reportedly found multiple active meth labs and other evidence of drug activity at a Plymouth home. Plymouth and Marshall County Police accompanied by Indiana State Police Troopers executed a search warrant at a home in the 1,000 block of North Plum Street last night and arrested three women and a man. Members of the ISP Clandestine Lab Team spent several hours there cleaning up bags of trash labs and materials used in the manufacture of meth. Authorities say details will be released later today.
Police Seeking Witnesses to St. Joseph County Crash Involving State Trooper
If you were in the South Bend area last night and saw a crash involving a marked Indiana State Police Car and a Hyundai Elantra, the police want to talk to you. The wreck occurred around 8 p.m. at the intersection of Ireland and Linden Roads. Authorities say Trooper William B. Ennis was westbound on Ireland Road approaching the intersection with Linden Road in his marked police car with his red and blue emergency lights activated. A 2003 Hyundai Elantra driven by 19-year-old Robert Lee Perez of Mishawaka was southbound on Linden Road, entered the intersection and was struck broadside by Ennis’ police car. Perez was trapped in his car and was extricated by the South Bend Fire Department. He’s in critical condition at a South Bend hospital. His passenger, 20-year-old Danielle Cutler of South Bend is in serious condition, according to authorities. Ennis suffered injuries to his hip and lower extremities. He’s also in the hospital and is in stable condition. Continue reading
Snow keeps state troopers busy
State troopers throughout the Lowell district, which includes most of the WKVI listening area, were out in force yesterday. Snow started falling around lunchtime and continued into the evening hours. During that time and until 8 this morning they worked 63 property damage crashes and seven personal injury wrecks, none of which were life-threatening. They also responded to 61 slide-offs and numerous assisting motorist calls. Those numbers are for the entire Lowell District, which includes areas north and west of here.
LaPorte Man Arrested, Charged with Child Solicitation
Early Friday afternoon, Indiana State Police Detective Jennifer Richmond, assigned to the Crimes Against Children unit, arrested Christopher Albin, 23 of LaPorte, at his residence at 808 Virginia Avenue on charges of Child Solicitation as a Class C felony.
