Man charged with Attempted Murder after shooting at officer

james-maple-iii

 

(Official release from the Martin County Sheriff’ Department)

On Saturday, February 16, 2019 at 5:00am, Martin County Sheriff’s Office Corporal Tyler Reed was checking an abandoned vehicle on Pridemore Cemetery Road when another vehicle approached Corporal Reed. Corporal Reed made contact with the driver and recognized him as James R. Maple III. Corporal Reed knew that Mr. Maple was wanted out of Lawrence County, Indiana. Corporal Reed also smelled the strong odor of marijuana coming from Mr. Maple’s vehicle. Corporal Reed confirmed through dispatch that Mr. Maple had an active warrant and requested that Lawrence County officers come to his location to assist. Corporal Reed then pulled his vehicle forward and angled it to block Mr. Maple’s vehicle from leaving. Corporal Reed exited his vehicle and ordered Mr. Maple out of his vehicle.

Mr. Maple then put his vehicle in reverse and angled it toward Corporal Reed and his vehicle. Corporal Reed had to move out of the way to avoid being struck and crushed between the two vehicles. Mr. Maple then rammed Corporal Reed’s vehicle and forced it out of the way. Mr. Maple then fled west on US 50 and Corporal Reed initiated a pursuit. Mr. Maple tried to elude Corporal Reed near the National Gypsum Factory entrance by turning around and fleeing back East and Corporal Reed continued the pursuit. Mr. Maple then turned north on to Red School Road near SR 650 with Corporal Reed behind him. Mr. Maple then turned back west on US 50 and continued to the US 50/US 150 junction where he turned on to US 150. The pursuit continued to Mill Road where Mr. Maple turned.

Corporal Reed briefly lost sight of the vehicle as Mr. Maple crested a hill. After Corporal Reed crested the hill Corporal Reed observed a vehicle coming towards him. The vehicle turned out to not be the suspect vehicle. Corporal Reed asked the driver of the vehicle if he had met any vehicles. At this time several gunshots were fired from behind Corporal Reed. Corporal Reed then noticed the suspect vehicle partially concealed under some trees in the front yard of a residence. Corporal Reed left the immediate area to await assisting officers. Officers from the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, Daviess County Sheriff’s Office, Shoals Town Marshal, Indiana State Police, and Indiana Department of Natural Resources soon arrived. Corporal Reed’s narcotics-certified K9 Virka was utilized for a free air sniff of the suspect vehicle. K9 Virka gave a positive indication for the odor of narcotics. K9 Virka and Shoals Town Marshal Eckert’s K9 Adel were both utilized for a track of Mr. Maple. A search of the area was conducted resulting in Mr. Maple trail but he could not be located. Mr. Maple’s hat and vape pipe were located in the area as well as shell casings.

Officers then received information on Mr. Maple’s location. Officers converged on a residence approximately 2 miles from the site of the shooting. After 30 minutes of commands for Mr. Maple to exit peacefully with no response, the Sheriff’s Office armored vehicle was utilized to ram the mobile home multiple times. Mr. Maple then exited peacefully and was taken into custody and transported to the Martin County Security Center.

A search warrant was executed on Mr. Maple’s vehicle. A search of the vehicle resulted in officers locating a large amount of methamphetamine and marijuana, a scale, labeled baggies, paraphernalia, and over $4,000 in cash. Additional currency was seized from Mr. Maple’s person totaling nearly $2,000.

A search warrant was executed at the residence where Mr. Maple had been located. A search of the residence resulted in officers recovering methamphetamine and several firearms. The occupants of the residence, Amy Qualkenbush and Dustin Holt, were taken into custody and transported to the Martin County Security Center.

James R. Maple III
30 years old from Indianapolis, Indiana

1) Attempted Murder – Level 1 felony
2) Dealing in Methamphetamine – Level 2 felony
3) Possession of Methamphetamine – Level 3 felony
4) Possession of Marijuana – Class A misdemeanor
5) Dealing in Marijuana – Class A misdemeanor
6) Resisting Law Enforcement – Level 6 felony
7) Reckless Driving – Class C misdemeanor
8) Criminal Recklessness – Level 6 felony
9) Leaving the Scene of an Accident – Class B misdemeanor
10) Possession of Paraphernalia – Class C misdemeanor
11) Lawrence County, IN Warrant

Amy K. Qualkenbush
28 years old from Shoals, Indiana

1) Possession of Methamphetamine – Level 6 felony

Dustin M. Holt
29 years old from Shoals, Indiana

1) Possession of Methamphetamine – Level 6 felony