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SHELBY COUNTY PROSECUTOR’S
OFFICE
2007 YEAR-END REPORT
During 2007 the Criminal/Juvenile Division of my
office handled over 6,406 cases. That number does not
include Child Support cases. Included in that caseload
are 196 Major Felony prosecutions (Murder, Class A, B &
C felonies); 449 Class D felony prosecutions; 1,447
Misdemeanors; and 3,244 Infractions.
In addition to those cases we also prosecuted 203
Juvenile matters, and filed 493 Search Warrants and
Miscellaneous Criminal Cases. An additional 374
criminal cases and investigations were processed by the
Prosecutor’s Office that did not result in formal
criminal charges.
Overall, I believe that 2007 was a good year for law
enforcement in Shelby County. We managed to hold the
line on major felonies committed in Shelby County. We
continue to enjoy one of the safest places to live in
Indiana, in spite of the fact that we share a common
border with metropolitan Indianapolis/Marion County.
In fact, the Progressive Farmer magazine recently ran an
article on the Best Places to Live in Rural America.
The story also appeared on AOL.com’s website. Under the
category of “Lowest Crime Rate”, Shelby County, Indiana
was listed #8.
One other positive note from last year was a
significant increase in the number of class “D” felony
cases filed, up 26.5% from last year. In particular,
“D” felony Operating While Intoxicated cases went up 38%
over the previous year. Drunk driving continues to be
an enforcement priority for this office. I believe that
is reflected in these statistics.
Last year, in collaboration with the Shelby County
Sheriff’s Department and the Shelbyville Police
Department, we adopted a Fatal Alcohol Crash Team (F.A.C.T.
team) approach to dealing with fatal vehicle crashes and
those involving serious bodily injury. Each F.A.C.T.
team includes a detective, prosecutor, accident
reconstructionist, drug recognition expert and crime
scene technician. The teams are on call 24 hours a
day. They are dispatched to every fatal or potentially
fatal traffic collision in the county. In essence, we
treat each of theses crashes as a crime scene and as a
potential homicide case. The concept has worked out
very well. I believe that it has had an effect on the
number of, and quality of, the D.U.I. cases we have seen
in the past year.
As the elected Prosecutor, I can’t emphasize enough
how lucky we are to live in Shelby County. You would be
hard pressed to find a more dedicated, more professional
group of law enforcement officers anywhere in the State
of Indiana. My deputies and my administrative staff
continue to do a great job for the citizens of Shelby
County. The quality of the officers that we have to
work with makes our job that much more enjoyable.”
– R. Kent Apsley |
