A lengthy investigation by the Indiana State Police, with assistance from the South Bend Police Strategic Focus Unit, culminated with search warrants and the arrest of a South Bend, IN man on charges of dealing a narcotic drug and methamphetamine.

The Indiana State Police executed a search warrant at 207 North Dixie Way Apartment 320 Roseland, IN on the morning of November 18, 2020.

This warrant was the result of a lengthy investigation that began after the Indiana State Police received a citizen tip concerning drug dealing throughout St. Joseph County, IN.

As a result of this investigation, William Pollard, 40 of South Bend, IN was arrested preliminarily for Dealing Cocaine or a Narcotic Drug, Dealing Methamphetamine, Possession of Cocaine or a Narcotic Drug, and Possession of Methamphetamine.

Troopers located two handguns, numerous items associated with drug dealing and distribution, United States Currency, and plastic bags containing suspected heroin.

Pollard was transported to the St. Joseph County Jail following his arrest.

Citizens can report suspected drug activity by calling the Indiana State Police Bremen Post at 574-546-4900

Globally about 50 million people have been diagnosed with COVID-19, 1.2 million have died from the virus and 36.5 million have recovered, according to the World Health Organization.

People recovered from the most severe cases may face new long-term health challenges. The Mayo Clinic reports that the aftereffects of COVID-19, often caused by sepsis, include brain tissue damage that can cause strokes, bring on seizures and increase the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Other organs shown to have permanent damage suspected of being caused by the virus include the lungs and heart.

“The long-term health challenges arising from sepsis and other potential complications experienced by patients recovering from the severe cases of COVID-19 are devastating, but medical professionals and researchers are diligently working to reduce these cardiovascular and neurological aftereffects,” said Hyowon (Hugh) Lee, associate professor in the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. “We are beginning to understand the effects of coronaviruses, and there are many therapeutics in progress to help treat the effects of  COVID-19 and other diseases that can help patients recover today and in the future.”

Sepsis is the body’s extreme response to an infection and a life-threatening medical emergency known to cause a reaction that can damage organs and could cause organ failure.

Purdue University scientists and other researchers are building on decades of research to retool known and developing health solutions for recovering COVID-19 patients.

“Purdue is a renowned global research institution, and the treatment of neurological issues is a top priority. The available technologies we have in this field show great promise in treating brain diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, as well as brain traumas,” said Brooke Beier, vice president of the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization. “These potential treatments show great promise in helping people who have recovered from COVID-19 and who now face new health disease complications. We are always working diligently to move these treatments from the laboratory to the public.”

One of Lee’s collaborative research projects was recently published in Applied Materials and Interfaces, a magazine of the American Chemical Society. The other two Purdue scientists working in this project are Shriram Ramanathan, professor of materials engineering; and Alexander Chubykin, assistant professor of biological sciences.

The technologies developed to treat neurological and other organ damage or diseases that have been published in peer-reviewed journals include a:

• ‘Library’ of broad-spectrum coronavirus treatments in advanced stages of research that includes 48 peptidomimetic compounds designed work as inhibitors for SARS, MERS and other coronaviruses.

• Technology that could improve sepsis control in early-state treatment and endotoxin reduction. The treatment may be administered before an infection causes the body to react in an extreme response that can lead inflammation, permanent damage and potential failure of organs.
• Novel glutamate-sensing material that could provide earlier detection of neural degeneration and enable earlier treatment that could improve prognosis and outcomes.
• Group of dopamine receptor agonists that support physiological responses to treat neurological brain disorders and are shown to reverse drug-induced and age-related deficits in memory.
• New pupillary light reflex technology, shown to provide real-time, automated monitoring of neurological changes due to disease, provides a noninvasive, expedient method to diagnose neurological degeneration and provide earlier treatment. The technology is compatible with any imaging platform and eye color.
• Group of energy-efficient electrode designs that reduce power and extend the functionality of implantable neuroprosthetic devices that help people with diseases and injuries, including epilepsy, spinal cord trauma, chronic pain and other neurological issues. The technology works with existing platforms or in a stand-alone system.

Purdue scientists also are working on new technologies to address the long-term health impact on the lungs and hearts of patients who have recovered from the severe cases of COVID-19.

For information on licensing available technologies, contact the Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization at otcip@prf.org.

About Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization

The Purdue Research Foundation Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2020, the office reported 148 deals finalized with 225 technologies signed, 408 disclosures received and 180 issued U.S. patents. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, which received the 2019 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Place from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. In 2020, IPWatchdog Institute ranked Purdue third nationally in startup creation and in the top 20 for patents. The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.      

The suspect who was shot and killed by law enforcement in Batesville on Monday, November 16, 2020, has now been identified as Joshua D. Evans, age 32.

Batesville Police Officers were called to Evans’ home on Bridlewood Trace Road at approximately 8:00 AM on Monday after he was reported to be acting irrationally, causing the other occupants of the home to fear for their safety. 

Officers initially arrived and removed an adult female and three children from the residence. 

While officers stood outside the garage of the residence attempting to make contact with Evans, he fired a shot at an officer. 

An officer was struck by debris from that shot and received minor injuries.

Numerous officers from multiple agencies responded to the scene. 

Evans remained barricaded inside the garage for over three hours. 

At one point, Indiana State Police Negotiators made contact with him on the phone and began speaking to him. 

At approximately 11:30, Evans fired additional shots from the garage.  Evans soon exited the garage while holding a gun.

Three troopers with the Indiana State Police SWAT Team and an officer with the Greensburg Police Department fired shots during the incident. 

Evans was struck by at least one shot.  He was provided with immediate first aid but died as a result of the injuries he sustained.

The investigation by detectives with the Indiana State Police-Versailles District is ongoing. 

An autopsy was performed yesterday in Hamilton County, Ohio. 

The results of the autopsy and the toxicology results are pending at this time.

The names of the involved officers are not being released at this time.

Washington County stayed in the “Orange” category of Covid positivity rate for the second week in a row as the positivity rate declined to 10.65.

A week ago, the county moved to Orange from Yellow, and had a total positivity rate of 14.92 which was dangerously close to being in the “Red” category.

The 7-day positivity rate was 12.2 percent with 12 new cases reported Wednesday and a total case count of 602.

This is an increase of 169 cases since November 1. 

The Indiana State Health Department designates a Red county that has a 15 percent positivity rate or greater. 

Washington County Health Officer Dr. Jeff Morgan issued strict guidelines for county schools to go online for junior and high school students and a limit of 50 attendees of extracurricular events.

He said if the county moved into the “Red” zone, he would recommend all students go online and all sports be shut down.

Indiana reported 6,143 new cases of the coronavirus Wednesday and an additional 60 deaths as the state map detailing viral spread shaded ever darker.

Only one county in this week’s update, Putnam County, appears as yellow.

The rest are either orange, the second-highest level of spread, or red. This week more than 21 counties around the state fall into the red or highest category of spread.

Nine counties were Red last week:

• Clay
• Decatur
• Fayette
• Fountain
• Lagrange
• Newton
• Perry
• Union
• Warren

Twelve more counties turned Red this week:

• Lake
• Porter
• Elkhart
• Steuben
• Dekalb
• Whitley
• Allen
• Wells
• White
• Sullivan
• Brown
• Ripley
• Dearborn
• Franklin
• Spencer

A total of 4,830 Hoosiers are confirmed to have died from COVID-19, an increase of 60 from the previous day.

Another 254 probable deaths have been reported based on clinical diagnoses in patients for whom no positive test is on record.

Deaths are reported based on when data are received by the state and occurred over multiple days.           

To date, 1,989,456 unique individuals have been tested in Indiana, up from 1,969,088 on Tuesday.

A total of 3,668,049 tests, including repeat tests for unique individuals, have been reported to the state Department of Health since Feb. 26.

The state Department of Health will offer free drive-thru clinics at the following locations today through Saturday this week:

Lake County
St. Timothy Church
1600 W. 25^th Ave., Gary

Clay County
Clay County Testing
911 Bonnie Geyne Miller Dr., Brazil

Spencer County
Spencer County Community Center
1101 E. CR 800 North, Chrisney

Jasper County
Kankakee Fire Station
12161 N. County Road 200 East, Wheatfield

To find other testing sites around the state, visit www.coronavirus.in.gov and click on the COVID-19 testing information link.