GARY MAN FACES AT LEAST 10 YEARS FOR KILLING UNBORN CHILD
A Gary man faces at least 10 years after admitting he beat his pregnant girlfriend, killing her 4-month-old fetus.
Cortez Morehead, 27, pleaded guilty in documents filed March 30 to feticide and criminal confinement, both Level 3 felonies.
The plea deal calls for an argued sentence. Each charge carries a penalty of up to 16 years.
If a judge accepts the agreement, his sentencing hearing is May 6. In exchange, prosecutors agreed to drop several charges, including murder.
Gary Police responded July 29 to the 1000 block of Van Buren Street.
The woman said her four kids were home when she and Morehead got into an argument. She went to her bedroom. When she refused to leave, he threatened to punch her in the face, charges show.
After she called the police, he drove off in her vehicle. When officers arrived, they told her to lock her door as they looked for Morehead.
The woman told officers that at some point, Morehead came back and brutally attacked her, including punching her in the face and stomach and dragging her back inside. She ran to a neighbor for help.
Ring videos confirmed the woman’s account.
GARY TEEN GRANTED BAIL IN FRIEND’S MURDER
A magistrate granted bail for a teen charged in his friend’s murder last month, court filings show.
Tramell McHenry, 18, is charged with murder, auto theft and intimidation. He also faces a gun enhancement that could add another 5-20 years if convicted.
Magistrate Kathleen Sullivan set his bail at $100,000, or $10,000 cash. Granting bail in a murder case is a potential sign that the case’s evidence is weaker.
However, Judge Gina Jones denied a request Wednesday to cut Tramell’s bail further, writing in court filings that he was a “danger to himself and others.”
His next hearing is April 22.
East Chicago Police responded April 24 to the victim’s apartment on the 4900 block of Melville Avenue. There, they found Jamel Bardney, 18, curled up in a fetal position in his bedroom, shot once in the head.
He was shot at “point-blank” range and appeared “defenseless,” the affidavit states.
McHenry is accused of stealing Bardney’s Buick LeSabre after his death.
FORMER MIDSHIPMAN’S TRIAL RESCHEDULED
The federal trial for a former U.S. Navy midshipman whose comments on a social media app triggered a lockdown was delayed this week.
Jackson Fleming, 23, of Chesterton, is indicted for one count of transmitting a threat in interstate communication by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Indiana.
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In court filings, prosecutors said they needed more time for expert witnesses.
They allege the off-handed comment Fleming made to a friend in the Jodel app, commonly used by midshipmen, was in reaction to activist Charlie Kirk’s Sept. 10, 2025, death.
“Honestly not that surprised I’ll be carrying out the mass execution of my peers in a couple,” he wrote.
The message was visible on the app and led to an hour-long lockdown on Sept. 11, 2025.
About 90 minutes after the lockdown took effect, the Naval Academy’s deputy commandant emailed students, telling them that as law enforcement worked to secure the school, a midshipman mistook police for a threat and engaged them, according to the official.
The official added that the midshipman was armed with a parade rifle and struck an officer in the head. Law enforcement, in turn, fired on the midshipman, striking him in the arm. The account was reported earlier by The New York Times.
Hours later, at 9:40 p.m., a Navy statement confirmed that there was no threat of an active shooter and that one person was flown by helicopter with injuries but was in stable condition. The lockdown was lifted shortly after midnight.
A pretrial hearing is scheduled Aug. 18, while his new trial date is Aug. 31.
HEBRON MAN CHARGED WITH BURGLARY
A Hebron man is facing charges after his ex-girlfriend stabbed him after he walked into her home uninvited.
Tylor Worley, 30, is charged with burglary, attempted aggravated battery, battery by means of a deadly weapon, strangulation and misdemeanor invasion of privacy.
He is in custody with a bond set at $10,000 cash. His next hearing is April 15.
Hobart Police responded at 10:22 p.m. April 1 to the first block of N. Delaware Street. The couple was trying to push Worley out the door when officers arrived.
Worley physically fought the officer who used a Taser to subdue him, an affidavit states.
The pregnant woman, 29, told police she thought she heard the storm door open and someone in the house. Her new boyfriend, 29, found Worley.
Worley soon had the other man in a chokehold as the man tried to get Worley’s knife. She grabbed a “bread” knife and stabbed Worley in the thigh, charges state.
He was eventually taken to an Illinois hospital for treatment.
MERRILLVILLE MAN FACES RAPE, AGGRAVATED BATTERY CHARGES
A Merrillville man faces separate criminal cases for rape and aggravated battery.
Shawn Page was charged April 4. He is currently in custody.
The rape victim told police that Page sexually abused her in January and February.
“Let’s go… and do the nasty,” he told her Jan. 1, adding she’d be punished if she refused.
“(You need) to have a lesson learned,” he told her.
The woman said it was very “scary.”
When Page tried to have sex with her, she ran out of the room and hid, according to the affidavit.
The next month, he sexually abused her again.
The victim had a “mental disability,” court records state.
In the criminal confinement case, Page took a hammer on March 1 and broke glass on a dresser, telling the same victim to pick up the pieces. He also broke her elbow.
A second woman said he slapped her, then broke a wooden “love” sign and beat her arm with it.
A third woman said Page grabbed her throat in the garage and slammed her head on the door. He grabbed a dresser and threw it at her, bruising her leg. Page told her she had to clean up the mess, charges state.
[email protected]; Post-Tribune archives and the Associated Press contributed.
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