An Indiana State Police investigation into an officer-involved shooting event on January 1, 2021 is complete.
The incident began when Jeffery L. Marvin of Valparaiso reportedly failed to stop after a Marshall County Sheriff’s Deputy attempted to pull over his vehicle for a moving violation in the area of U.S. 30 and Pioneer Drive in Plymouth. A vehicle pursuit began with officers from the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and the Plymouth Police Department.
The pursuit ended in Koontz Lake in Starke County when vehicles moved to a dead-end road in the area of South Street and Anderson Road, which is considered a residential area, according to the report from the Starke County Prosecutor’s Office. It goes on to say that Marvin’s vehicle made a U-Turn and faced the officers. The vehicle reportedly ran into a police commission and he also hit other police vehicles. As Marvin revved the engine, police say Marshall County Sheriff’s Department Deputy Richard Prater drew his gun and gave Marvin verbal commands to shut off the vehicle for fear that Marvin may injure someone. Marshall County Sheriff’s Deputy Blake Bennett also drew his weapon, according to the report. When Marvin failed to comply and kept revving the engine, both officers reportedly simultaneously fired their service weapons.
Medical aid was immediately rendered to Marvin and EMS personnel tended to him when they arrived on scene, according to the report. He was airlifted to the hospital but later died of his injuries.
Documents state that after an autopsy and toxicology tests were completed, it was determined that Marvin had a mixture of drugs and alcohol in his system at the time of his death. He died of gunshot wounds.
The Indiana State Police investigation reportedly found that a doorbell camera and dashboard cameras from police vehicles corroborated the officers’ account of events that unfolded during the incident in interviews following the incident. The report stated that Deputy Bennett and Deputy Prater were “legally justified under Indiana’s self-defense law and no criminal charges shall be filed.”
