INDIANAPOLIS — The Center Township Constable’s Office has begun to reinstate some of its deputies.
Last week, Center Township Constable Denise Hatch terminated all of her deputies. The move came just days after one deputy constable was charged for felony weapons possession.
At the time of the terminations, Hatch said some of the deputies would be allowed to return to the constable’s office, so long as they could clear the Interstate Identification Index — a background check also known as the Triple I.
Per a statement from the Center Township Constable’s Office, all Indiana Law Enforcement Academy-certified deputies have been reinstated. Deputies who have cleared the Triple I are also slated to be reinstated.
According to the statement, the process of terminating and reinstating deputies has “cleared and removed any individuals who were not qualified to have law enforcement powers or possess a firearm.”
The same statement also indicated that terminated deputies who do not complete a background check by Feb. 28 will not have an opportunity to return the Center Township Constable’s Office as a deputy.
According to previous reporting, Hatch herself is facing felony charges of official misconduct, assisting a criminal and resisting law enforcement.
Last October, FOX59 and CBS4 obtained body camera footage of an interaction Hatch had with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. The video seemed to show Hatch cursing out IMPD officers who were detaining a Center Township Constable’s Office deputy for unlawful carrying of a handgun.
