Winona Lake Sued for $100,000 after Alcohol Arrest
Posted
David Slone-dslone@timesuniononline.com
A tort claim has been filed against the Town of Winona Lake for $100,000 following a public intoxication arrest May 17 that occurred on private property. Attorney David C. Kolbe filed the notice of tort claim on behalf of Abram Galvin, 26, Chicago, against the town Monday. According to Kolbe this morning, when there’s a tort claim against a government entity, the wronged party must serve notice by certified mail upon the entity within 180 days of the alleged act. The entity has 90 days to respond. If the entity or their insurance carrier denies the claim, a lawsuit then is filed. The claim states Galvin was arrested by Town Marshal Paul Schmitt May 17 for public intoxication on private property. A criminal case was filed against Galvin. “He was arrested, taken into custody and detained in the Kosciusko County Jail. He was falsely arrested and unlawfully detained for the charge, which was later dismissed,” according to the claim. The arrest occurred at approximately 7:48 p.m. at 306 15th St., Winona Lake. Schmitt declined to comment Monday afternoon on the pending litigation. According to Schmitt’s narrative in the Winona Lake Police Department investigation report, at 7:48 p.m. May 17 central dispatch made contact with Schmitt regarding several males outside of the house at 306 15th St. The subjects had been there for some time drinking and singing. The complainant also observed one of the subjects urinating on the sidewalk next to the house. Schmitt was on Pierceton Road near the location when he responded in his unmarked police car and in full uniform. “When I arrived there were four to five males sitting and standing around the porch of the house ... All subjects appeared to be intoxicated and there were numerous Budweiser cans on a table on a porch,” Schmitt’s narrative states. “I asked whose house it was and one subject sitting at the table said it was his girlfriend’s rental but she was not home. I then asked who urinated on the sidewalk and several said it was not them.” Schmitt then told the group the party was over and they should enter the home and stay there until sober. Eventually, all the subjects moved inside the home. “I warned them if they came back out, they would be arrested for public intoxication,” the report states. Schmitt left the location and drove around the block to a point where he could observe the front of the house. Within three minutes, one of the subjects (Galvin) came out the front door and walked around the porch. He eventually bent down behind a car that was parked in the driveway and Schmitt could not see what he was doing. Schmitt drove to the front of the house where he could see Galvin, who was looking inside a guitar case lying on the ground. “I told him to stand up and put his hands behind his back, that he was under arrest for public intoxication. When I had spoken to him prior to this, he was very slow and deliberate in his speech, slurring his words when he talked. Subject was unsteady on his feet and swayed when he walked. He had a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage on his breath,” Schmitt stated in the report. Galvin was handcuffed, searched and placed in the backseat of Schmitt’s car, and then transported to the Kosciusko County Jail and booked with bond set at $300. He was charged with public intoxication, a Class B misdemeanor. Kolbe said Galvin was not given a breathalyzer test, but that’s very common with public intoxication arrests. The standard of proof for public intoxication is milder than that for driving under the influence. The definition of public intoxication is broad so a breath test is not required. On July 25, the State of Indiana moved that Kosciusko Superior Court 2 dismiss the criminal charge of public intoxication against Glavin without prejudice. The court granted the state’s motion and ordered that the criminal charge be dismissed. The Clerk of the Court was ordered to refund Galvin the cash bond posted in the case. When asked why the charges were dropped, Kolbe stated he “advocated the charges should be dropped because the facts did not support a criminal case.”
