Two Warsaw men appeared before Judge Duane Huffer in Superior Court I this morning to enter guilty pleas for their separate crimes. The first, Brian K. Knoop, 46, Warsaw, withdrew a not guilty plea to enter a plea of guilty to one count of sexual battery, a class D felony. Knoop’s original charge was one count of rape, a class B felony, which was dropped as part of the plea. Knoop’s charge stems from an incident that occurred on October 1, 2012. In a separate case, Howard L. Southall, 50, Warsaw, entered a plea of guilty to one count of child solicitation, a class D felony. An additional class D felony count of sexual battery was dropped. Southall is accused of soliciting a child at least 14 years of age, but less than 16 years of age over the summer of 2012. Both men were represented by Scott J. Lennox with Prosecutor Daniel Hampton present. Judge Huffer ordered a pre-trial investigation to take place. Both men will appear back in court on April 30 at 8:30 a.m.
