Morgan County Prosecutor's Office

05/27/2026

SENTENCING UPDATE:

On March 21st, 2026, Morgan Court Superior Court 3 sentenced Tyler Murtlow to the following:

53 years all to be served at the Department of Corrections.

Broken down as follows: 39 years on Count 1; 6 years on Count 3, 2.5 years on Count 4; 2.5 years on Count 6; 1.5 years on Count 7 and 1.5 years on Count 8. All counts consecutive to each other. Count 5 was vacated by the Court.

Count 1: Neglect of a Dependent Resulting in Death, Level 1 Felony
Count 3: Possession of Child Po*******hy, Level 5 Felony
Count 4: Performance before a Minor that is Harmful to Minors, Level 6 Felony
Count 5: Performing Sexual Conduct in the Presence of A Minor, Level 6 Felony
Count 6: Performance before a Minor that is Harmful to Minors, Level 6 Felony
Count 7: Neglect of a Dependent, Level 6 Felony
Count 8: Neglect of a Dependent, Level 6 Felony

04/29/2026

Following a 7-day jury trial, Tyler Murtlow was found guilty of the following counts yesterday, April 28th, 2026 in Morgan Superior Court 3:

Count 1: Neglect of a Dependent Resulting in Death, Level 1 Felony
Count 3: Possession of Child Po*******hy, Level 5 Felony
Count 4: Performance before a Minor that is Harmful to Minors, Level 6 Felony
Count 5: Performing Sexual Conduct in the Presence of A Minor, Level 6 Felony
Count 6: Performance before a Minor that is Harmful to Minors, Level 6 Felony
Count 7: Neglect of a Dependent, Level 6 Felony
Count 8: Neglect of a Dependent, Level 6 Felony
(Count 2, Not Guilty)

This case was tried by Chief Deputy Prosecutor, Cassie Mellady and Chief Trial Deputy Prosecutor, Michelle Armstrong. Detective Jerry Bertelsen of Martinsville Police Department was the lead investigator and was assisted by many other detectives and law enforcement though the Morgan County Major Crimes Task Force.

The Defendant's sentencing is scheduled for May 21, 2026.

04/06/2026

April is Child Abuse Prevention Month. Pictured below are members of the Morgan County Prosecutor's Office and local Law Enforcement Officers who work tirelessly together on child abuse cases and investigations. You can learn more at https://zeroabuseproject.org

03/24/2026

JOIN US TONIGHT!

Present from our office will be Chief Deputy Prosecutor, Cassie Mellady and Chief Trial Deputy, Michelle Armstrong.

02/20/2026

Following a two-day jury trial in January, Tyler Haemmerle was found guilty of the following charged counts:

Count 1: R**e, Level 3 Felony
Count 2: Criminal Confinement with bodily injury, Level 5 Felony
Count 3: Sexual Battery, Level 6 Felony
Count 5: Battery, Class A Misdemeanor

The verdict was entered against the Defendant on January 8, 2026, Morgan County Superior Court 3. (Counts 4 and 6 were not guilty.)

On February 18, 2026, the sentencing hearing was held and Tyler Haemmerle was sentenced to 5,600 days all to serve at the Indiana Department of Corrections. (About 15.3 years).

The State would note the MAX sentence under the law is 16 years and the State asked for that sentence. The sentence given by Morgan Superior Court Judge Sara Dungan was only 240 days short of the max allowed by law.

The Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office would like to thank the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department, especially Detective Zack Dodson or his work on the case.

This case was tried by Chief Trial Deputy Prosecutor Michelle Armstrong and Chief Deputy Prosecutor, Cassie Mellady.

10/27/2025

Following a four-day jury trial in August, Michael Percifield was found guilty of all 10 charged counts:

Count 1: Attempted Murder, Count 2: R**e, Count 3: R**e, Count 4: Criminal Confinement, Count 5: Strangulation, Count 6: Strangulation, Count 7: Criminal Confinement, Count 8: Intimidation, Count 9: Intimidation and Count 10: Domestic Battery. The verdict was entered against the Defendant on August 15, 2025 Morgan County Superior Court 2..

On October 10, 2025, the sentencing hearing was held and Michael Percifield was sentenced to 67 years all to serve at the Indiana Department of Corrections.

The Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office would like to thank the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department, especially retired Detective Mark Anderson for his work on the case. This case was tried by Chief Trial Deputy Prosecutor Michelle Armstrong and Deputy Prosecutor Jim Martin.

10/03/2025

Following a four-day jury trial in August, Jody Harvey was found guilty of Count 7: Child Mo**st, Level 1 Felony, Count 8: Child Mo**st, Level 1 Felony and Count 9: Display of Matter Harmful to a Child, Level 6 Felony in Morgan County Superior Court 1 on August 29, 2025.
*Counts 1-6 were not guilty findings by the jury.*

On October 2, 2025, the sentencing hearing was held and Jody Harvey was sentenced to 38 years on Count 7 consecutive to 38 years on Count 8 and 912 days on Count 9 to run concurrent to Count 7 and 8 all to serve in the Indiana Department of Corrections.

For a combined total sentence of 76 years. The Defendant is a credit restricted felon.

The Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office would like to thank the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department, especially retired Detective Mark Anderson for his work on the case. This case was tried by Chief Trial Deputy Prosecutor Michelle Armstrong and Elected Prosecutor Steve Sonnega.

04/03/2025

April is Child Abuse Awareness Month. Don't be afraid to speak out if you have a concern about a child. Call to report: Indiana Child Abuse and Neglect Hotline 1-800-800-5556

07/08/2024

06/21/2024

Following a two-day jury trial, Robert Lawhorn was convicted of a Level 5 Auto Theft in Morgan County Superior Court 2 on March 20, 2024.

On April 18, 2024, Lawhorn was sentenced to 1000 days in the Indiana Department of Corrections.

The Morgan County Prosecutor’s Office would like to thank the Morgan County Sheriff’s Department, especially Detective Richard Clayton for his work on the case. This case was tried by Deputy Prosecutors Jacob Moore and James Martin