A Greenwood man is headed to state prison after admitting to sexual misconduct involving a teenage employee at a New Palestine pizza shop in 2022.
Charles B. Wolfe, 34, of Greenwood, was sentenced Friday in Hancock Circuit Court to a six-year term and ordered committed to the Indiana Department of Correction. Prosecutors said the misconduct happened late on July 13 or in the early hours of July 14, 2022, after work shifts at the New Palestine restaurant and later inside Wolfe’s vehicle; the victim was 15 years old at the time.
Sentence Details And Plea Deal
Wolfe took a plea agreement that resolved the original slate of charges and canceled a scheduled jury trial. According to Greenfield Reporter, the judge imposed a six-year sentence totaling 2,190 days, with 1,686 days suspended to sex-offender-specific probation and 504 days as a direct commitment to community corrections. The court also ordered Wolfe to serve time in the Indiana Department of Correction as part of the punishment.
Prosecutors’ Account Of The Allegations
Prosecutor Brent Eaton told the court the case “involved a victim who was 15 at the time” and said the family had “no closure for months,” according to the reporting. Court documents cited by the paper state that Wolfe encouraged the girl to drink alcohol while they were closing the shop, then kissed her, touched her inappropriately and exposed himself. The Indiana Department of Child Services interviewed Wolfe and recorded that he changed his account in a later interview. The remaining charges included sexual misconduct with a minor, while other misdemeanor counts were dismissed under the plea deal, Greenfield Reporter reports.
Legal Consequences And Supervision
Beyond time behind bars, people convicted of certain sex offenses in Indiana face registration and strict probation rules under state law. The sex-offender registration statute defines who must register, what duties they have and how long those duties last, and courts can order treatment and other conditions as part of probation. Details are set out in the Indiana Code. The 504-day direct community corrections portion of Wolfe’s sentence means part of his confinement will be served under Hancock County’s local community corrections programs in Greenfield, which operate alongside state prison commitments for offenders assigned to community corrections, according to Hancock County records.
Case Status And Next Steps
Prosecutors said the case saw multiple continuances before the plea agreement came together, and the deal ultimately took a jury trial off the court’s summer calendar. Wolfe will be transported to the Department of Correction and, after any institutional time, will move to the sex-offender-specific probation ordered by the court, along with any registration obligations the law requires. The sentencing brings formal closure in court to a case that has been closely watched by the victim’s family and Hancock County authorities.
