In June 2022, the Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place for nearly 50 years, two former Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department employees will face criminal charges and a man pleads guilty to the starvation death of his 12-year-old son.
The Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place for nearly 50 years
In June 2022, the Supreme Court ended constitutional protections for abortion that had been in place for nearly 50 years — a decision by its conservative majority to overturn the court’s landmark abortion cases.
The court overturned Roe v. Wade which led to abortion bans in roughly half the states. The decision, unthinkable just a few years ago, was the culmination of decades of efforts by abortion opponents, made possible by an emboldened right side of the court that has been fortified by three appointees of former President Donald Trump.
The ruling came more than a month after the stunning leak of a draft opinion by Justice Samuel Alito indicating the court was prepared to take this momentous step.
Two former Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department employees facing charges
After two separate investigations by the Indiana State Police Bloomington District, and a review by Prosecutors, Superior Court I Judge John Plummer III issued a summons to appear for two former Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department employees in June 2022.
On March 19, 2022, Trooper Cody Brown was assigned an investigation into Michael L. Haag, 55, of Bedford who was then a Lawrence County Jail Supervisor along with additionally being employed with the Lawrence County Probation Department.
Haag had allegedly assisted a criminal who had an active warrant for their arrest and failed to report the whereabouts and/or failed to assist law enforcement with the arrest of the suspect.
After successfully applying for search warrants, electronic evidence was found to corroborate the investigation. Trooper Brown then provided an affidavit of probable cause which was reviewed by Lawrence County Prosecutor Sam Arp II and submitted to Superior Court I. Judge Plummer then found sufficient probable cause and issued Michael Haag a summons to appear on the charge of assisting a criminal, a level 6 felony.
Haag entered a pretrial diversion agreement on September 13, 2022,
In April of 2022, Trooper Brown responded to a residence in Mitchell after a 911 call was received, and officers from Mitchell Police Department requested assistance with an investigation of a reported domestic due to a conflict of interest.
Based on the ISP investigation, it was revealed that Dustin Allen, 46, of Mitchell, had allegedly committed domestic battery and was, at the time, employed as a Lawrence County Jail Supervisor.
Trooper Brown collected evidence and statements and then submitted an affidavit of probable cause to Special Prosecutor Chris Gaal, which alleges Allen did knowingly touch another person in a rude, insolent, or angry manner as defined by Indiana Code. After review and submission to the court, Judge Plummer issued Dustin Allen a summons to appear for the charge of one count of domestic battery, a class A misdemeanor
Allen’s case is still pending a conclusion.
Both cases are separate incidents and have no connection.
Man pleads guilty to the starvation death of his 12-year-old son
On June 1, 2022, 34-year-old Luis Eduardo Posso Jr. pleaded guilty to the starvation death of his 12-year-old son Eduardo Posso.
Eduardo Posso died on May 24, 2019. According to an autopsy, the boy had been beaten and starved. He only weighed 50 pounds at the time of his death. Eduardo died after his father took his lifeless body to IU Health Bloomington Hospital. His father, Luis Posso, claimed the boy slipped and fell in the shower, but authorities said the boy was murdered.
Eduardo Posso was chained, beaten, and shocked with an electric dog collar, then left alone in the bathroom of the Economy Inn in Bloomington for weeks.
According to Monroe County Coroner Joni Shields Eduardo died of starvation saying he was “severely emaciated” and had bruises all over his body.
Police examined the couples’ phones and found videos of Eduardo restrained in a bathtub. Posso even took a selfie in the bathroom with his son restrained in the background, police said.
The couple’s three other children, a 9-year-old girl, a 5-year-old boy, and a 2-year-old boy, were placed in the care of Child Protection Services. Officials say they appeared to be healthy.
Posso pleaded guilty in a negotiated plea deal in Monroe Circuit Court to a charge of murder. The following charges were dropped, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, neglect of a dependent, criminal confinement with injury, and battery resulting in injury to someone younger than 14.
On October 6, 2022, Posso was sentenced by Judge Christine Talley Haseman to 65 years in prison and was given 123 days credit. He is appealing the sentence.
The boy’s stepmother 28-year-old Dayana Medina-Flores also pleaded guilty in July 2021 in a negotiated plea deal to her part in the murder and was sentenced by Judge Christine Talley Haseman to 65 years in prison. Her attorney has filed for a sentence reduction saying Medina-Flores, feared physical retaliation from her husband if she didn’t comply with his demands.
Medina-Flores and Posso worked as independent contractors for a circus and passed out event flyers for a living. They traveled to different cities and states for work.
