Today I attended the final court hearing in the State of Indiana's criminal case against Jamey Noel, who has now been convicted of felony theft and public corruption, among other charges, and sentenced to 12 years of incarceration. I was allowed to submit a victim impact statement on behalf of our city due to the actual financial losses we have experienced as a result of Mr. Noel's behavior. Below is my full statement on behalf of our city:
My name is Treva Hodges. I am the elected mayor of the City of Charlestown, Indiana. It is on behalf of my city and our residents that I submit this victim impact statement for the State of Indiana's criminal case against former Sheriff and Republican Party Chair, Jamey Noel.
Residents and taxpayers in the City of Charlestown have suffered insult to our reputation as an independent unit of government, financial loss, and increased risk to our public safety because of the actions of Jamey Noel. Specifically, I note the following three harms:
1) Jamey Noel’s use of corrupt influence denied the City of Charlestown a fair opportunity to participate in the selection of our EMS provider. Mr. Noel’s influence over the Clark County Commission members by virtue of his political positions has been well documented in this case and he has admitted he is guilty. The Clark County Commissioners searched for and selected Jamey Noel’s New Chapel EMS as the provider in closed-door sessions without a public bid opening or consultation with the City of Charlestown. Despite a quote from another EMS provider that offered more coverage for a lower cost, the Clark County Commissioners awarded the EMS contract to Jamey Noel’s company, increasing the cost-share portion to the City of Charlestown and denying the City the right to participate as a distinct and separate unit of government.
2) Additionally, Jamey Noel used his corrupt influence over the Clark County Council to divert money from the City of Charlestown’s Public Safety Fund resulting in financial loss for the city. In December of 2022, the City of Charlestown received notice from the Clark County Council that our portion of public safety revenue in the form of Local Income Tax would be reduced so that the County could pay for price increases of Jamey Noel’s New Chapel EMS contract. The City of Charlestown uses our Local Income Tax revenue to pay our portion of the salary for our school resource officer, a total of $41,758. The City received no opportunity to remonstrate the Council’s decision. The amount taken from our police department annually for Jamey Noel’s contract was $42,209, the full amount of our SRO’s salary. At the County Council meeting in which the vote was conducted to take money from the City of Charlestown’s police department to cover their funding gap for Jamey Noel’s New Chapel EMS contract, both John Miller and Brittany Ferree were members of the County Council and voted in favor of the action. Mr. Miller is the Council Member who made the motion to approve the action. The alleged links between Mr. Miller, Ms. Ferree, and Jamey Noel have been well established and documented by Lieutenant Hearon in his investigation of this case. The gap in the city’s budget created when money was diverted to pay Jamey Noel resulted in a loss of services to our residents. To date, our total financial loss is $84,418.
3) Jamey Noel’s admission of theft directly affected the residents of the City of Charlestown and jeopardized our public safety. If it is true that Jamey Noel illegally spent New Chapel funds received through his County contract on elaborate gifts, services, and payments for himself and others, then it is also true that a portion of the money used to make those payments came from money that would have otherwise funded the City of Charlestown’s School Resource Officer. These actions placed the residents, and specifically our school children at risk by decreasing funding for necessary police protection and public safety resources. The City was forced to turn to cash reserves and restrict funding for other public safety initiatives to provide money needed to maintain a satisfactory level of protection.
Charlestown is a small, rural community of about 8,000 people. Our budget is not large. We cannot afford extravagance. The City of Charlestown has been irreparably harmed by the corrupt business influence and acts of theft committed by Jamey Noel. As an elected official, I believe maintaining public trust is critical to the success of our communities. I have read with great interest and much frustration all the probable cause affidavits and publicly available court filings related to this case over the last year. I believe that Mr. Noel used his political influence and position as elected Sheriff of Clark County to take money from our local police department for his personal benefit. Mr. Noel has now admitted his guilt. I hope that this honorable court will remember the 8,000 people of the City of Charlestown and the children who attend our schools when deciding an appropriate penalty for Mr. Noel’s behavior.
Treva Hodges, Mayor of Charlestown
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