What Was He Thinking?

Carmel Police Chief Michael Johnson thought he had seen it all during his long tenure in law enforcement—until last week.

A Carmel man answering a traffic citation before Carmel Justice Thomas Jacobellis was asked to empty his pockets prior to passing through a metal detector outside the courtroom at Carmel Town Hall used to monitor visitors insuring security and safety.

The chief said Officer Stephen Kunze, who was working court security that night, allegedly observed Austin Curley, 20, take a plastic bag out of his pocket along with his car keys, change, a wallet, and other personal items and place them in a basket.

When the officer examined the items he discovered that the bag was filled with marijuana. Curley was arrested on the spot—charged with unlawfully possessing the illegal contraband.

Curley was taken before the judge and released without bail pending an April 13 hearing.

The chief asked: “What was the guy thinking?”