Marsh
A Columbus man will serve a year in jail for firing shots during an incident that occurred in April 2022.
Kaden M. Marsh, 20, pled guilty to and was sentenced for criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon as a Class A misdemeanor on July 18. He was sentenced to serve one year in jail, with no probation and no suspended time. He gets credit for one day of previous jail time, according to court documents filed with Johnson County Superior Court 3.
Marsh is not yet incarcerated but was ordered to commence serving his year at the Johnson County jail on Aug. 12, court documents say.
The incident
The sentence stems from an incident that occurred in southern Johnson County on April 25, 2022. That night Johnson County 911 received a call from a victim who reported she was being followed by an SUV on County Road 400 South. She reported she had been followed by this vehicle since she got off Interstate 65 and Edinburgh exit. She had several younger passengers with her, according to a report from Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.
As she traveled west along CR 400 South, she reported being passed by the dark-colored car near the “Indian Grave.” As she was about to reach U.S. 31 she reported the car pulled in front of her vehicle, blocking her in. The caller told the 911 operator that a male stepped from the passenger side of the SUV and displayed a pistol, the report says.
The woman and the three young girls were heard screaming on the phone “he got a gun.” The male suspect, later identified as Marsh, then fired several rounds at their vehicle. The gunfire could be heard on the 911 call and on the audio of a nearby home security camera, however, no shell casings were recovered, the report says.
The 911 dispatcher instructed the victim to drive through the grass to escape, the report says. The woman — who identified herself to the Daily Journal as Brieana Burton — and her younger sisters escaped physically unscathed that night. However, the memories of that incident stick with them to this day, Burton said.
It was not immediately known that Marsh was the gunman. The Johnson County Sheriff’s Office was able to locate him from the car’s license plate, which had been captured on a FLOCK camera. The sheriff’s office was assisted by Jackson and Bartholomew county sheriff’s offices and Columbus Police during the investigation, Sheriff Duane Burgess said at the time.
The aftermath
It has been more than two years since that night, but the memories stick with the victims.
Burton says she deals with post-traumatic stress disorder from the incident. Since the incident occurred in the car, the memories are forced to the surface often: the feeling of being followed, nervously glancing up in the rearview mirror.
She can also see the lasting trauma the incident has caused her sisters and even their parents.
“We’re all affected, and it’s definitely something that will never leave us,” Burton said. “Every time I get in the car, I’m very observant on the road. I make sure a car is not following me too long. I take different ways when I drive, so I’m not always driving the same way.”
In addition to trauma related to the incident, they’ve been frustrated at the slow pace the case moved through the court system, Burton said.
Numerous continuances stretched the case out as evidence was gathered and the case was built, court records show.
Because of an unrelated gun case involving Burton’s cousin, the case also switched prosecutors during the process. Steven Sonnega, Morgan County’s elected prosecutor, was assigned to the case on March 21, court records show.
The sentence
The case finally crossed the finish line on July 18 when Marsh pled guilty and was sentenced by Judge Douglas Cummins.
Sonnega credits Detective James Bryant of the sheriff’s office with getting him up to speed on the investigation, and for going out of his way to follow up on additional leads on the case, he said.
Marsh was initially facing a Level 5 Felony charge of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, however, the charge level was lowered because none of the shots fired hit the car and no one was injured, Sonnega said.
“I know that it sounds very legalist, but until the penalty is increased, we have to work with the statutes as they are written,” he said in an email.
Bringing the case to a close with a plea allowed the victims to avoid testifying in court and reliving the trauma of what happened to them, he said. The sentence terms also ensure the defendant will be going to jail, he added.
Burton said she is happy there will be some jail time, but feels the sentence is too light for shooting a gun at someone.
“I feel like the whole thing was just messed up, to put it in nice terms, and just not done, in favor of the victims,” Burton said. “It was a win to hear him admit to it after bashing us on social media [and talking] about how he didn’t do it. However, I think because he shot three live rounds and there were minors involved, I just feel like there should be more of a sentence.”
Even though they weren’t hit, they felt their lives were in danger and live with lasting trauma.
“I do not think his sentence is long enough because of how long we’ve been to court after the situation and the trauma he has given us will last the rest of our lives,” another victim said.
Though the sentence feels light, it is the advisory sentence for a Class A misdemeanor under Indiana law. Because the law says “up to one year,” the sentence could have been lesser under current law.
