Criminal Justice Planning Council Meeting – September 28, 2026

The Criminal Justice Planning Council met on September 28, 2026, at 4:00 PM in the City-County Building (T-260) in Indianapolis, chaired by Ryan Mears. The meeting, rescheduled from the prior week due to Yom Kippur, covered the Marion County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) inmate count and a presentation on juvenile waiver statutes from the Marion County Prosecutor's Office. Board members present as introduced included Leroy Robinson, Abby Hanson, Sheriff Kerry Forestal, Andrew Merkley, and Scott Hall. The agenda header prints the date as September 28, 2025, but the confirmed meeting date is September 28, 2026.

Discussion Items

MCSO Inmate Count – Major Shanklin Woods, Marion County Sheriff's Office

• As of September 28, 2026, the Adult Detention Center (ADC) held 2,286 males, 325 females, and 24 juvenile males. Crisis mode is set at 80% of capacity; exceeding that rate is flagged in red.
• The HEA 1006 inmate count was 2; the Sheriff's Office said the Department of Correction (DOC) has not improved pickup, so the two individuals remain held.
• A total of 221 inmates were awaiting DOC placement (186 housed in the ADC plus 35 held off-site), with 19 additional parole detainees.
• The Sheriff's Office has moved inmates to Carroll County (25 on one trip, 15 on another) as a "pass-through" to free space for new arrests, beginning about two weeks before the meeting. Those inmates are not included in the 186 housed DOC-hold count, making the true total higher.
• The board discussed that the most common detained charges include level 5 offenses such as battery by deadly weapon and burglary, while many level 6 detainees face domestic-related charges. Bond amounts—driven by factors such as use of a deadly weapon or multiple victims—affect how long level 5 defendants remain in custody; level 6 defendants generally do not stay as long.
• OPHS Director Andrew Merkley asked whether more could be done to engage level 5/6 detainees on recidivism as release-lobby operations change next year; the Prosecutor's Office responded that bonds are judge-determined and it is willing to keep working with OPHS.
• A board member requested a pretrial versus post-conviction breakdown in future reports, noting that a significant number of inmates are pretrial.

Juvenile Waivers – Celita Scott, Marion County Prosecutor's Office

• As of the meeting, three juvenile waiver cases were pending (juveniles ages 14, 15, and 15), and four cases had been direct-filed into adult court in 2026.
• A total of 39 cases had been filed into adult court this year; 28 were dangerous possession cases, with the remainder ranging from armed robbery to burglary to aggravated battery.
• A July 2026 statutory change made it harder to direct-file dangerous possession cases: a prior misdemeanor dangerous possession adjudication alone no longer permits direct filing; another linked felony charge and more than one prior dangerous possession adjudication are now required.
• Direct filing remains available at age 16 and older for level 5 dangerous possession committed on school property or within 500 feet of school grounds or a school bus, when a child gives a gun to another child, or when a child intends to use a gun in a crime.
• Juveniles under 16 must begin in juvenile court, including for murder, and can reach adult court only through the waiver process; direct filing at 16 and older is available for murder, robbery, and certain sex crimes.
• Scott Hall, Executive Director of Marion County Community Corrections, said his agency serves juveniles only after waiver to adult court; only one individual under 18 is currently on the caseload, so no juvenile-specific programming exists. The agency is exploring an "emerging adult" (18–24) specialty caseload and is partnering with an organization referred to as "recycle force" for that population.
• Scott said the curfew statute is a status offense: a child cannot be committed to the Department of Correction for a curfew violation; law enforcement must make reasonable efforts to contact a parent or guardian, and the court can provide resources to address home issues.

Next Steps

• The next Criminal Justice Planning Council meeting is scheduled for November 16, 2026.
• Andrew Merkley offered an OPHS update on reporting, including AIC data, CLCR, and the release lobby; board members expressed particular interest in the release lobby and AIC information.

Key Outcomes

• No substantive motions or roll-call votes were taken; a motion to adjourn was made and seconded, and the meeting ended.
• The Sheriff's Office was asked to provide a pretrial/post-conviction breakdown in future inmate-count reports.
• The Prosecutor's Office will continue monitoring juvenile waiver trends under the revised statute.
• The November 16 meeting will include an OPHS presentation on crime statistics and release-lobby operations.