Law enforcement is investing after a man laying on a county road was struck by law enforcement during a welfare search for the man in dense fog.
HANCOCK COUNTY — Officials with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department (HCSD) say law enforcement is investigating after a welfare call for a person found lying on a county road ended tragically.
A man who was lying in the driving lanes of a county road was accidentally struck by a deputy with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department who was conducting the search for the person last night in a dense fog. The man struck, whose name has not been released, was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
Capt. Robert Harris of the HCSD said in a release that law enforcement officials were called to the area of U.S. 40 and CR North 600W, better known as Mt. Comfort Road, at approximately 3:55 a.m.
Law enforcement was responding to a welfare check concerning a report of a person found lying in the road somewhere in the area. Harris noted members from both the HCSD and Cumberland Police Department responded immediately to the scene.
When officials arrived in the area, which was covered in a dense fog, they immediately began looking for the person both east and west on U.S. 40 from North 600W.
The person, Harris said, was lying in the travel lanes of U.S. 40 approximately a half mile east of North 600W, and during the search was accidentally struck by a HCSD deputy who was called in to search the area.
Major Robert Campbell of the HCSD said officials are not certain if the man was already dead and was lying in the road or died due to being struck by the deputy’s vehicle, but another police department is conducting an official investigation.
The person struck has been identified as a 41-year-old male who was wearing dark clothing, officials said. He was pronounced dead at the scene. His name is not being released until the identity can be confirmed and his family notified.
Campbell told the Daily Reporter the deputy has been placed on administrative leave until the investigation is complete.
“We will give the deputy some administrative leave time and go from there,” Campbell said. “Obviously this is a very dramatic event for everyone involved including the family of the man so there is still a lot to process here.”
Campbell said they’re following standard protocol and that includes waiting for investigators to do their job before releasing any more information.
“There are procedures we have to go through when something like this happens, and we’re doing our due diligence and making sure we do everything correctly,” Campbell said.
The Hancock County Fatal Accident Crash Team (FACT) responded to the scene to conduct the investigation. The team is comprised of officers from several agencies in Hancock County, including the New Palestine Police Department.
The New Palestine Police Department is the primary agency investigating the incident, in conjunction with the Hancock County Coroner’s Office. The investigation is ongoing.
