A local man was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to hurling chairs at a judge and courtroom staff after a court hearing earlier this year.
Jordan L. Rhoades, 21, of 465 Clifty Drive, appeared remorseful during his sentencing Wednesday before Special Judge Timothy B. Day, and was handed tissues by a court security officer when he became tearful during the hearing.
Rhoades admitted to throwing chairs in the direction of Judge Kathleen “Kitty” Tighe Coriden, deputy prosecutor Jeremy Fisk, who suffered a minor leg injury in the incident, and other courtroom personnel as part of a plea agreement in the case. The incident was caught on courtroom security video Feb. 9 in the Bartholomew Superior Court 2 courtroom.
He accepted a plea bargain in the matter by admitting that he is guilty of battery resulting in bodily injury to a public safety officer, a Level 5 felony, the charge relating to Fisk’s injury. The five years handed down on that conviction Wednesday was one year less than the maximum allowed by law.
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During testimony from Rhoades and his mother, Stacy Petro, the two said Rhoades has regularly used methamphetamine since he was 18. The defendant also admitted using heroin at least twice.
“If I don’t do something drastic to get you help, you never will,” the judge told Rhoades.
Day, who usually presides as Decatur Circuit Court judge in Greensburg, included a year-long intensive drug treatment program as part of Rhoades’ sentence, which will be served first.
If the defendant successfully completes what the judge described as a 24/7 program housed away from the general prison population, Day said he will likely modify the remainder of the sentence.
Besides the five-year sentence, the judge also ordered Rhoades to pay $743 in restitution for the damage to the Superior 2 courtroom, which included broken computer equipment and splintered and gouged court furniture.
The Feb. 9 incident began after Coriden sentenced Rhoades to one year in jail for probation violations, court records state.
As Rhoades began saying vulgarities under his breath, Coriden continued to sentence him to additional jail time for contempt of court after each repetition.
In response, Rhoades threw three chairs toward Coriden and the court staff. Fisk was the only reported injury and Rhoades left the courtroom, but was stopped by a Bartholomew County Courthouse security officer on the first floor while trying to leave the building.
Since that time, Rhoades has been accused in another incident while in jail, the Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department reported. He is charged with three felony charges of battery after being accused of taking part in a Labor Day vandalism spree at the county jail, when three correctional officers were injured.
Rhoades is accused of tearing apart a section of his cell door and using metal rods from it as a weapon against to inflict scrapes, scratches and bruises on sheriff’s deputies, according to the department.
On Sept. 12, Rhoades was formally charged with three counts of battery, causing bodily injury to a public safety officer. Each count is a Level 5 felony punishable by one to six years in prison, as well as fines of up to $10,000.
Bartholomew Superior Court 1 Judge Jim Worton, who recused himself from the case involving the chair-throwing because of his professional relationship with Coriden, is presiding over the jail case.
Rhoades has been assigned court-appointed attorney David A. Nowak, and a jury trial has been set for March 6 in Worton’s court, court records state.
