A man who was the key witness in the trial of suspended Hope Town Marshal Donald R. “Randy” Bailey received a two-year sentence on misdemeanor battery charges.
But all jail time was suspended for Anthony W. Paul, 51, 15602 E. Lake Shore Drive South, Hope, beyond time already served.
Originally, Paul faced two felony counts of battery on a person younger than 14, felony strangulation and two Class A misdemeanor counts of neglect of a dependent, according to court documents.
However, in Bartholomew Superior Court 1 on Monday, Judge James Worton accepted a plea agreement that allowed Paul to plead guilty to the battery charges as misdemeanors, rather than felonies. In exchange, all other charges were dropped.
The plea agreement was approved by special prosecutor Amy Marie Travis from Jackson County and defense attorney Dan Patterson before Worton agreed to it, court records state.
But the judge did add a requirement that Paul must undergo alcohol and drug evaluation and then follow all treatment recommendations during his two years of probation or serve his time in the Bartholomew County Jail.
Investigators turned the matter over to Travis, who filed the charges against Paul on Feb. 2.
When interviewed late last winter, Travis said it was a coincidence that the charges against Paul were filed less than a week after Bailey’s Jan. 28 conviction in Bartholomew Circuit Court.
In the Bailey case, the suspended town marshal was convicted of making false accusations that led to the wrongful arrest of Paul in May 2012.
Those charges against Paul were dropped, and Bailey was convicted Jan. 28 of felony misconduct.
