crime

Marion County’s jail intake facility wrestles with arresting charges of sexual misconduct.

A full-blown conspiracy theory needs a motive to thrive. And last September, the government served up a doozy: On top of the child-porn prosecution, it announced, Sachtleben had agreed to plead to additional, “unrelated” charges of breaching national security.

The jury’s decision stunned the sleepy town. As one Nashville denizen told IM, “Good luck finding someone who admits to knowing those two now. The entire community thinks they’re guilty as sin.”

What Daniel Foster knows for sure is that by 2:15 a.m., his brother lay in the club’s parking lot, blood seeping from his ear.

“I feel like we are doing this by ourselves and fighting a losing battle,” says Rev. Charles Harrison.

Indianapolis is drawing heroin straight from Mexico and bypassing Chicago altogether—which might account for the high potency.

Councillor John Barth proposed a bipartisan study to help determine how many officers Indy really requires, so the Council can work on a long-term plan. “We need to take politics out of policing,” he says.

Crusader of the Year: U.S. Attorney Joe Hogsett. No one made more big cases in the past year—and his savvy press people made sure we all heard about the exploits. The crime-fighter still has plenty of fish to fry.

Including one of Indiana’s biggest cons, a complicated woman in her final days, a reality-TV hilljack, the crafty governor-elect, a big-deal farmer, the coupling of an actress and a corn-fed rocker, and more.

Numbers don’t tell the whole story. Facts on the ground make us fear that crime is simply running amok, particularly in some of the city’s destination neighborhoods and at showcase attractions.

“The guys around here are looking for trashy. I wear old, worn-out pants—I’ll even rub them around in the dirt. I’ll smudge my makeup, or maybe ruin my manicure. The idea is to look hard-luck, not sexy.”

“Offenders know there’s a stigma. When they’re arrested, some are ashamed; others are relieved. I’ve actually had men tell me that they were glad to be caught. I think they take solace in having someone they can talk to about this secret they’ve been keeping.”

“Usually, we just follow the trail of money. Offenders will open 15 bank accounts and keep the money moving from one to the next. Eventually, it always comes out of one of those accounts into a mortgage, or a car, or a boat.”

“I was introduced to an Outlaws biker once when I was buying meth. The guy pulled out a .44 black powder pistol that was almost a foot long and set it on the table to intimidate me.”

The excitement of Thanksgiving was quelled. Later, at church, we all prayed a little harder.