Staff Reports
The Indiana National Guard has a new leader.
Gov. Eric J. Holcomb announced Tuesday that he selected Col. R. Dale Lyles to serve as the Guard’s adjutant general. He also will be promoted to the rank of brigadier general, according to a news release.
Lyles will succeed Maj. Gen. Courtney Carr, who retired in August amid a lawsuit filed by a former military contract worker who claims she was retaliated against by Carr after she reported concerns about Carr’s affair with a subordinate. Shari McLaughlin filed the lawsuit in August in Marion County Superior Court against Carr, court records show.
Carr, who is from Columbus, was appointed adjutant general in 2015 by then-Gov. Mike Pence, a Columbus native who is now vice president of the United States.
“I am confident that Colonel Lyles has the proven leadership skills, ethical character and practical know-how to lead the Indiana National Guard,” Holcomb said. “His vision for the Guard will create a culture of safety, success and stability that is critical for the defense of Indiana.”
Lyles will begin as adjutant general Tuesday, and he will be sworn in during a promotion ceremony at a date yet to be determined.
A native of Salem, Lyles has served most of his 32 years in the military in Indiana. He was deployed to Bosnia shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, in support of Operation Joint Forge and to Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom.
Most recently, Lyles has served as the deputy chief of staff for operations at the National Guard Bureau in Washington, D.C., where he focused on the operations training and readiness for the Army National Guard.
In Indiana, he served the director of Atterbury Muscatatuck operations, commander of the 219th Engineer Brigade and commander of Muscatatuck Urban Training Center, among many other assignments. Lyles earned the Legion of Merit and a Bronze Star Medal, among numerous other military awards and decorations.
Lyles earned a bachelor’s degree from Indiana University, a master’s degree in management from Oakland City University and a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College.
