Bermann
A Greenwood woman has been sentenced to 27 years for attempting to shoot a juvenile with a rifle last year.
Linda Bermann, 35, pleaded guilty to attempted murder, a Level 1 felony, in Johnson County Circuit Court Monday morning. She was sentenced to 27 years in an Indiana Department of Correction facility, 20 years of which will be served in prison. Seven years of the sentence will be suspended to probation, two years of which will be on home detention.
She was also recommended to take part in the Recovery While Incarcerated program and was ordered to seek mental health and substance abuse treatment.
The charge stems from an incident on May 3, 2021, when Greenwood police responded to the 1700 block of Blue Grass Parkway after the two juveniles said she tried to shoot them with an assault rifle. The victim told police he was playing video games in a room upstairs when Bermann burst into the room, pointed the rifle at his head and pulled the trigger. The gun jammed and did not fire, according to the probable cause affidavit.
The victim pushed Bermann out of the room as she tried to unjam the gun, locked the door and called 911. Another juvenile who heard the commotion and saw Bermann point the gun at the victim also called 911, according to court documents.
When officers arrived, they demanded Bermann exit the house, which she did without incident. She later told police she put the gun down when she heard the sirens outside, court documents show.
Once detained, Bermann told police at the scene she wanted to kill herself, and she intended to point the gun at the victim. She later told police she wanted to kill herself and the two juveniles because a relative had upset her, and she wanted to make that relative feel guilty, according to court documents.
Police entered the house and went upstairs where they observed the rifle on the floor in the hallway in front of the room where the victim was. It had an indention on the primer of the round from what appeared to be a contact point of the firing pin, which indicates the bolt of the rifle was forward with the firing pin pressed against the primer of the cartridge as it was chambered. But it is not clear whether the trigger is required to be pulled for the firing pin to cause the mark. Police found 18 unfired bullets in the magazine, court documents show.
Police found two firearms inside the house — the rifle and a pistol — both of which were secured and placed into evidence, court documents show.
After the charges were filed, Bermann’s defense attorney requested she be evaluated for competency to stand trial due to a history of mental health issues. She also has a history of alcohol abuse and spent time in rehab in Oklahoma following an incident in which she tried to stab a juvenile with a sharp object, according to court documents.
During a pre-trial competency in March, the defense told Johnson County Circuit Court Judge Andrew Roesener that competency exams had been completed. The results of the exams made it clear there were some issues present, Ginny Maxwell, Bermann’s attorney, told the judge. Maxwell said she believed the defense and prosecution are going to come to some sort of agreement regarding the case, and the defense does not intend to have a jury trial.
In court on Monday, Maxwell once again brought up Bermann’s mental health issues and her family’s history of issues, asking Roesener to consider it with his sentence. While it doesn’t excuse anything, it is a factor. Bermann believed she was going to “purify” the juveniles and punish the relative, Maxwell said.
“Not a stronger presentation of mental health issues than that,” she said.
Later, Johnson County Prosecutor Joe Villanueva read a letter in open court from the adoptive parents of the juveniles. The parents said they “feel” for Bermann but still have feelings of sadness and anger. The parents have had to pay out of their own pockets for trauma therapy for the children, Villanueva said.
Villanueva also brought up several aggravating factors in this case, including the fact the violence happened to and in front of someone who was under the age of 18. The number one role of a parent is to protect children, but Bermann put them in danger and there will be long-term psychological damage for the children, he said.
This was also not the first time Bermann’s mental health issues have led to violence. Though she was never charged, Bermann previously injured a juvenile with a sharp object, he said.
Maxwell called the entire situation a “crime against nature,” saying that Bermann didn’t wake up with a desire to kill her family. The incident resulted from her being mentally ill, Maxwell said.
“This is not a documentary on Netflix,” Maxwell said.
Before Roesener issued Bermann’s sentence, he said that he didn’t think that Bermann didn’t love the children, however, she mismanaged her life to the point of negligence, he said. She will have to spend her life focusing on both mental health and sobriety, he said.
“I don’t think you’re evil; you’re dangerous under certain circumstances,” Roesener said.
As part of their investigation into the incident, police had also filed a separate probable cause affidavit with the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office to initiate the red flag law process. Under the red flag law, also known as the Jake Laird Law in Indiana, police may seize guns from a person who is mentally unstable and a danger to themselves or others.
Bermann was a danger to both herself and others, police determined. They filed the documents to retain custody of the firearms and to make sure she cannot purchase others if she is released from jail on bond.
Roesener upheld confiscation of the firearms at a hearing last year. Both Bermann’s defense team and the prosecution agreed the confiscation was justified, court documents show.
On Monday, the confiscation came up again following Bermann’s sentencing, with Villaneuva asking about what happens with the guns. The defense asked for the government to hold onto them, however, prosecutors did not want to be responsible for the weapons for the next two decades. Ultimately, Roesener said that the parties involved should work together on this, with a decision on what happens with the guns to be made later.
