A Jasper man was arrested Wednesday after burglarizing a storage unit rented by an Indiana State Trooper.

Arrested and Charged was Joseph A Frank, 29, Jasper, IN

– Burglary, Level 5 Felony

– Theft (under $750 value), Class A Misdemeanor

Master Trooper Brian LaRoche reported Wednesday that his storage unit in Jasper had been burglarized, and that items had been taken.  

Access into the unit was gained by the burglar accessing the storage unit next door and entering through the wall.  Multiple items were taken, including a weed trimmer and panels for a dog kennel.

Senior Trooper Brock Werne began the investigation by speaking with the lessee of the storage unit next door.  

Werne was provided with the Frank’s name.  Frank was the only additional person with access to the unit.

Werne went to Frank’s address in Jasper to speak with him about the case.  

While standing on the front porch, Werne and LaRoche observed a weed trimmer that LaRoche identified as his.  

After speaking with Frank, Frank was placed under arrest and all of LaRoche’s items were located and returned.

The Indiana Department of Transportation plans to begin lane restrictions on Interstate 65 next week as concrete work begins—weather permitting—as part of a $2,086,611 pavement restoration project that will eventually extend from Stansifer Avenue to Exit 9/Sellersburg.  

Milestone, Indiana’s contractor, will begin replacing bridge approaches at the Lewis and Clark overpass on Monday (JULY 17).  This will require closing southbound I-65’s left lane and left shoulder between Stansifer Avenue and the I-265 interchange.   The restrictions begin at 9 p.m. Monday. (JULY 17).   

On Tuesday morning, crews will begin cleaning and sealing bridge joints to prevent water intrusion into the pavement’s subbase.  I-65’s left lane restriction will continue through day- and nighttime hours.   

Next weekend, a second southbound left lane will be closed to expedite repair and maintenance operations. 

In addition to replacing bridge approaches and sealing joints, partial- and full-depth concrete patches will be made as needed within the project limits.  Drainage issues will also be addressed.  This work will progress northward from near Stanisfer Avenue during this phase of operations.  

INDOT’s contract completion date is October 31. 

I-65’s traffic count at the project site is 98,130 vehicles per day.

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The event is from July 10 to August 9, and Facebook users can sign up at http://bit.ly/CDC30SFD.

Free help for quitting tobacco use is always available through the Indiana Tobacco Quitline at 1-800- Quit-Now.

A Seymour man who was already in jail on other charges was charged with stealing electricity from his apartment building.

On Tuesday, an investigation was conducted into the theft of electricity at the Sycamore Springs Apartment Complex south of Seymour, IN, in June 2017. 

The allegation was that a tenant, James F. Stafford, whose electricity had been shut off, ran an extension cord from the common hallway electrical outlet to his apartment. 

The electricity is paid for by apartment complex management, not Mr. Stafford.  Mr. Stafford was using the extension cord for his own purposes while family members, including three children were living with him.

The common areas and hallways of the building are open to the public so the location of the extension cord was accessible to anyone who came or went from the apartment building including children who frequented the building.

Mr. Stafford was arrested and charged with Theft, a class A Misdemeanor, Criminal Recklessness a class B Misdemeanor, and Neglect of a Dependent a level 6 Felony.  He is being held without bond in the Jackson County Jail. 

Mr. Stafford was already in Jackson County Jail on other charges from a separate investigation.

Stafford was arrested by Reserve Deputy Scott Davis.

The head girls basketball coach at Trinity Lutheran High School in Seymour was arrested Sunday night on domestic battery charges.

Seymour Police arrested 45-year-old Michael Lang on a Level 6 felony charge after an incident reported just after 7 p.m. Sunday on Highlawn Avenue.

According to Seymour Police, Lang grabbed and shoved a woman during a fight at the woman’s home,

The woman declined medical treatment.

According to police, no children were present in the room where the incident occurred, but a second woman did witness the incident.

Lang is being held without bond in the Jackson County Jail without bond pending his initial hearing.

Lang became coach of the Cougars in 2011 and has compiled a record of 86 wins and 54 losses over the past six years. Prior to taking the job at Trinity, Lang had been a boys basketball assistant coach at Seymour High School.

The Cougars also won sectional titles in 2013 and 2014. 

A woman’s erratic driving Sunday morning caught the attention of an off duty trooper and lead police on a 30 mile chase.  

Indiana State Trooper Jason Pratt was traveling south on I-65 near the 124 mile marker, 71st Street exit, around 9:00 a.m. when  he saw a red Dodge Avenger pass a car on the right shoulder.  

The female driver then aggressively moved to the left lane and quickly accelerated to over 100 mph. 

Pratt ran the license plate and discovered that the car had been reported as stolen.  Trooper Pratt pulled his police car behind the woman in an effort to signal the driver to pull over but she refused to stop.  

Pratt along with several other troopers and Indianapolis Metro officers pursued the driver south bound on I-65 for nearly 30 miles before the woman hit stop-sticks, lost control and collided with the center guardrail. 

The stop sticks had been deployed by a Whiteland Police officer near the 94 mile marker in Whiteland.  

Officers surrounded the car and took the driver into custody.  The women, who would not give police her identity, was transported by ambulance to Eskenazi Hospital for evaluation. 

She was eventually identified using her fingerprints as 44 year-old Shawna Lynn Stacy from park Hills Missouri.  

Stacy has been charged preliminarily with resisting law enforcement with a vehicle, refusal to identify, and reckless driving.