Mocobizscene- The special prosecutor in Hancock County has announced that the constable for Marion County’s Center Township has been charged with five crimes in two cases. This news comes from Greenfield, Indiana.
Brent Eaton, the Hancock County Prosecutor, was designated as a special prosecutor in August. Since then, he has collaborated closely with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department in conducting the investigation.
Denise Paul Hatch, 64, has been charged with multiple offenses in two separate Marion County cases. The charges include two felonies of official misconduct, a felony of attempted assisting a criminal, and misdemeanors of theft and attempted resisting law enforcement. Hatch is set to appear for her initial hearing at 1 p.m. on February 29 in Marion Superior Court 18.
According to court documents, Hatch attempted to release a man who had been detained by IMPD officers and placed inside a police car. The man, who served as a Center Township deputy constable, was wanted for various criminal charges, including unlawfully carrying a handgun. It is important to note that he was prohibited from possessing a firearm due to a previous conviction for domestic violence. The deputy constable had been stopped by IMPD after officers noticed his erratic driving and subsequently discovered a gun in his Ford truck.
According to court documents, in August, Hatch was at a grocery store and expressed her desire to replace a bag of rotten produce with a fresh bag of similar items that she had just obtained from the Kroger produce section. A store manager relayed this information to an investigator.
When Hatch approached the manager to return the produce, she noticed a foul smell emanating from the bag and saw insects crawling out of it. The manager immediately realized that the produce was clearly weeks old. After leaving the store, Hatch accidentally set off an alarm, attracting the attention of a security officer who happened to be a Washington Township constable. The entire encounter was captured on the constable’s bodycam, where Hatch can be heard saying that they could arrest her if they wished to do so.
According to online records, she was incarcerated in the Marion County jail on Tuesday night. Additionally, online court records indicate that she posted a $250 cash bond on the same day.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Department, the jail’s operator, and the special prosecutor’s contact did not respond to an email from News 8 requesting Hatch’s jail booking photo as of Wednesday night.
Hatch, a Democrat, emerged victorious in the May 2022 primary and faced no opposition in the November 2022 election, as reported by BallotPedia. Garnering almost half of the vote in the primary, her success was undeniable.
In Indiana, township constables are responsible for serving judicial orders and maintaining peace within the township courts.
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