From a prison cell in Indiana, former Clark County sheriff Jamey Noel is now suing some of the same law-enforcement circles he once worked alongside, claiming they mocked his Catholic faith and cut him off from religious services while he was locked up. The federal civil-rights lawsuit, filed in mid-April, names six current and former officials and seeks about $930,000 in compensatory damages. Noel, serving a multi-year sentence after pleading guilty to felony charges last year, told the court he plans to represent himself.
Federal complaint filed in Indiana court
Noel filed his suit on April 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, according to the court docket on Justia Dockets & Filings. The complaint lists Scott A. Maples Jr., Mark A. Grube Jr., Jeffrey Hearon, Rusty Johns and Jerry D. Goodin as defendants and demands a jury trial.
Allegations in the suit
In his complaint, Noel says Sheriff Scottie Maples and Assistant Chief Mark Grube grabbed a screenshot of him praying from a secure jail camera and posted it to Facebook specifically “to ridicule” his Catholic faith. He also alleges that other officials blocked a visiting priest from entering the jail to offer communion and hear his confession.
The suit further claims that corrections officer Rusty Johns repeatedly refused to serve him meals, that Noel was housed in a cold cell where only scalding-hot showers were available, and that Indiana State Police Lt. Jeffrey Hearon seized his Mercedes without a warrant. Noel’s request for roughly $930,000 in compensatory damages and his plan to act as his own lawyer are laid out in reporting by WKYT.
Criminal case and restitution…