COLUMBUS – A Pike County deputy sheriff has been indicted on murder, involuntary manslaughter and other charges stemming from a recent shooting that killed his neighbor and his role in a fatal officer-involved shooting in March.
READ MORE: In The Columbus Dispatch
A Pike County grand jury indicted former Deputy Joel Jenkins on Thursday. The five-count indictment charged Jenkins with felony murder and reckless homicide for his role in the March 28 pursuit and fatal shooting of a suspect, said Dan Tierney, spokesman for the Ohio Attorney General’s office.
Authorities have said Jenkins, another deputy and a sheriff’s office commander were involved in the pursuit of a suspect who was clocked on the radar at 52 mph in a 45-mph zone. The suspect, 28-year-old Robert C. Rooker, reportedly sped away at more than 80 mph, then rammed into two cruisers. His vehicle eventually crashed and the pursuit ended with Rooker shot and killed by deputies. Authorities haven’t said how many deputies fired at him or many times he was struck.
Tim Dickerson, a major in the sheriff’s office, and Special Deputy Paul Henderson, were also involved in the incident. They have not been charged.
Jenkins was also charged with involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide and tampering with evidence for a Dec. 3 incident in which a neighbor was shot and killed at his Waverly home, Tierney said.
Authorities said Jenkins called a non-emergency line at the sheriff’s office late that night and told a dispatcher that his gun had misfired and that his neighbor had been shot. Authorities found 40-year-old Jason Brady, who had been visiting Jenkins’ home, dead of a gunshot to the head. Jenkins told authorities he had been showing Brady the gun and that the shooting was an accident.