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Trial rescheduled for man accused of tombstone vandalism

NEW CASTLE, Ind. (AP) – A trial has been rescheduled for an 18-year-old Springport man accused of damaging headstones from the 19th century.

Gilbert Ray is charged with cemetery mischief. His trial was initially set for Dec. 17 and has been pushed back several times to April 15.

Ray and a co-defendant are accused of damaging 27 headstones marking the graves of Henry County pioneers at Lewisville Cemetery last July. The secretary-treasurer of the cemetery’s board says all of the damaged headstones date back to the 19th century, including one that marks the grave of the town’s founder, Lewis Freeman.

The Star Press reports Ray told police the headstones were already damaged when he and his friends arrived at the cemetery.

His co-defendant, 19-year-old Jansen David Smith, pleaded guilty in September.