From a prison cell in Indiana, former Clark County sheriff Jamey Noel is now suing some of the same law-enforcement circles he once worked alongside, claiming they mocked his Catholic faith and cut him off from religious services while he was locked up. The federal civil-rights lawsuit, filed in mid-April, names six current and former officials and seeks about $930,000 in compensatory damages. Noel, serving a multi-year sentence after pleading guilty to felony charges last year, told the court he plans to represent himself.
Federal complaint filed in Indiana court
Noel filed his suit on April 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, according to the court docket on Justia Dockets & Filings. The complaint lists Scott A. Maples Jr., Mark A. Grube Jr., Jeffrey Hearon, Rusty Johns and Jerry D. Goodin as defendants and demands a jury trial.
Allegations in the suit
In his complaint, Noel says Sheriff Scottie Maples and Assistant Chief Mark Grube grabbed a screenshot of him praying from a secure jail camera and posted it to Facebook specifically "to ridicule" his Catholic faith. He also alleges that other officials blocked a visiting priest from entering the jail to offer communion and hear his confession.
The suit further claims that corrections officer Rusty Johns repeatedly refused to serve him meals, that Noel was housed in a cold cell where only scalding-hot showers were available, and that Indiana State Police Lt. Jeffrey Hearon seized his Mercedes without a warrant. Noel’s request for roughly $930,000 in compensatory damages and his plan to act as his own lawyer are laid out in reporting by WKYT.
Criminal case and restitution
Noel pleaded guilty to dozens of felonies last year and was sentenced in October 2024. He is currently held at the Indiana Department of Correction's New Castle Correctional Annex, with an earliest possible release date in June 2033, according to WIBC 93.1 FM.
As part of plea deals and related civil actions, judges ordered Noel to pay more than $3.1 million in restitution to several agencies, including New Chapel EMS, the Clark County Sheriff's Department and the Indiana Department of Revenue, with many of his assets auctioned to help recover funds. In a separate civil ruling, a judge also ordered approximately $918,000 in punitive damages payable to the state, a judgment reported by WDRB.
Legal implications and next steps
The case is brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, a federal civil-rights statute that allows people to sue state officials for alleged violations of constitutional rights. To win, a plaintiff has to show that the defendants acted "under color of state law" and that a protected right was violated, according to the Legal Information Institute at Cornell Law School.
The Southern District has already issued its standard filing guidance for inmates representing themselves, and the docket reflects Noel’s demand for a jury trial. Next up, the court is expected to set deadlines for the defendants to respond and for any early motions. The defendants can ask a judge to toss the case or assert various immunity defenses, and the court will have to decide whether Noel’s claims clear those initial hurdles before anything gets near a jury. The ongoing case details are listed on Justia Dockets & Filings.
Local fallout
Noel’s latest filing drops back into a community already worn out by years of controversy over Clark County leadership and the New Chapel EMS contract, where audits and lawsuits traced millions in public funds to personal property, purchases and luxury vehicles. Reporting by the Indiana Capital Chronicle has followed auctions of Noel’s assets and the escrowed proceeds that are supposed to help satisfy restitution orders, a process that could ultimately shape how much money agencies and other victims actually get back.
