The Marshall County Superior Court I trial of former director of the former Marshall County Solid Waste Management District, Michael Good, began June 14. Good was indicted by a Grand Jury in December 17, , 2014 for D Felony Theft. The indictment states that between January 1, 2012 and April 30, 2014, Good” sold scrap materials receiving approximately $9,017.12, with the intent to deprive Marshall County Solid Waste Management District of any part of the use or value of said property”.
A second indictment filed the same day was for D Felony Official Misconduct.
On Tuesday Good’s jury trial got underway with jury selection. From a pool of 24 potential jurors, six were seated during the first round. The jury is made up of three men and three women with one female alternate.
In his opening statement, Prosecutor Nelson Chipman told the jury that between January 23, 2012 and April 3, 2014 , Michael Good loaded a county owned vehicle with recycled material and made 15 trips to Lewis Salvage in Warsaw. Payments made at that time by Lewis Salvage were made in cash. Chipman said payments for only 3 of the 15 trips were given to Beverly McDonald, former education coordinator with Marshall County Solid Waste District , and the value of the other payments came to $9,017.12.
According to Chipman, the type of items sold included mainly batteries, ballasts, insulated wire, aluminum cans, and hard drives,
Attorney Michael Tuszynsky representing Good contended that the items were Good’s personal items that he collected and redeemed over a long period of time.
The prosecution called several witnesses before resting on or near 3:00 P.M.
Marianne Peters, current executive director of MC Solid Waste Management, had been hired by Good as an educator in November, 2014. She responded to questions about her job duties, banking systems, collection and disposal of household hazardous waste, and the types of recyclable materials accepted and sold.
Tim Eads, hazardous waste specialist for eight years at the facility , was also asked about the types of items collected. Eads said in eight years he only took one load of batteries to Lewis Salvage.
McDonald was asked to recount what happened in August, 2014 when an ISP (Indiana State Police) detective visited her office and asked about deposits made from copies of receipts from Lewis Salvage. She went on to describe Good’s activity in a normal work week. She indicated that he would frequently leave the facility.
Cary Lewis, Vice-President of Lewis Salvage , testified to how the company operates in terms of record keeping. He said the company logs every transaction and itemizes the types of recyclable materials. The state presented photos of 15 receipts. Deputy Prosecutor Lynn Berndt reviewed each receipt discussing materials, weights, and payments.
Tuszynski further contended that there is a lack of evidence by siting Trial Rule 50.
Defense witnesses include Good’s sister Angela Anderson. She spoke to his passion for recycling . She said she had given him items over a twenty -year period that were recyclable such as wire, batteries, and electronics. Anderson said Good stored items in his home garage and basement located in a subdivision on the south side of town (Plymouth).
Good took the stand in his own defense from 3:22 until 3:54. He shared a brief history of his life including past employment. Good called himself an “extreme recycler” accumulating items for 20 years with the idea of helping to pay college expenses for his three children.
Good did admit to using the county van on county time for personal use. He testified that he didn’t make a special trip with his “stuff”, but as he dropped off items at the Kosciusko County Solid Waste.
According to Good, he collected batteries, but not car batteries.
During a cross examination by Chipman, Good was asked why he didn’t tell the detective that had spoken to McDonald that the items were his personal material.
Jim Masterson, identified as a neighbor of Good, testified that he never saw a stockpile of recycled material, never saw anyone drop off items for recycling, and never saw Good loading the county truck. Masterson said they have been neighbors for 16 years.
The trial is scheduled to convene at 9:00 A.M. on Wednesday for rebuttal testimony with jury deliberations expected to begin by noon.
Reporters Kathy Bottorff and Carol Anders collaborated on this news story
