Sheriff fires deputy who mistakenly released murder suspect

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A deputy was fired Friday after a murder suspect was incorrectly released from jail, the Marion County Sheriff’s Office said Monday in response to an inquiry from News 8.

Noah Edwards, 23, was let of out jail Thursday after jail staff made an error, the sheriff’s office had said Friday. Police arrested Edwards early Friday morning and took him back to jail. He’d previously been jailed in connection to an April murder in Indianapolis.

Sheriff Kerry Forestal fired Detention Deputy Elwin Emery after an administrative review on Friday, the response says. An internal investigation remained incomplete Monday night.

The sheriff told Emery he completed a process involving a police identification number for an inmate, but “failed to review and verify” the correct inmate was to be released, leading to the wrong inmate being released. Forestal told Emery he violated two instances of “Compliance with Rules and Regulations” and one instance of “Performance of Duty – Efficiency.”