Fallen Marion County deputy called ‘icon of sheriff’s office’
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Colleagues of a slain sheriff’s deputy on Tuesday remembered him as a gentle giant on the job and at home.
Flowers and notes from family, friends and strangers accumulated on the hood of a transport wagon parked in front of the Community Justice Campus in tribute to Marion County Sheriff’s Office Deputy John Durm.
A jail inmate, Orlando Mitchell, 34, has been accused of killing Durm, a 38-year veteran, late Monday morning during an unsuccessful escape attempt. The coroner ruled the case strangulation and a homicide. Durm is said to have been using a transport wagon to take Mitchell, who’d been incarcerated while accused of murdering the mother of his child in September 2022, to a medical appointment.
Colleagues said the outpouring of support of Durm shows the broader community valued him as much as his co-workers did.
Deputy Chief Tanesha Crear, commander of the jail division, said she first met Durm at a ballgame shortly after she joined the force 18 years ago. Crear said Durm’s own family was as important to him as his law enforcement family. She said, just a few days before his death, Durm went golfing with one of his sons.
“That alone just shows who he is, not just as a sheriff’s deputy but as a person,” she said. “To say that we are experiencing a great loss is an understatement.”
Crear said Durm never hesitated when someone had a question or asked for help. She said his decades of service showed what the sheriff’s office meant to him.
“There is nothing we will be able to do to replace him, not only as a deputy, but John Durm, the man,” she said.
Durm is the first Marion County sheriff’s deputy to die in the line of duty since 2002.
Funeral and visitation arrangements were pending Tuesday night.
Previous coverage
- Docs: Inmate used handcuff chain to choke, kill Marion Co. sheriff’s deputy
- Memorial honors late Marion County Sheriff’s Deputy John Durm
- Suspect in death of Marion County sheriff’s deputy also charged in 2022 day care murder
- Docs: IMPD bodycam captures confession of suspect in shooting outside day care
- Family, friends remember mother killed at day care center
Social media post
“The Deputy John Durm Memorial Fund has been established by the Central Indiana Police Foundation. All donations will support Deputy Durm’s family.
“DO NOT contribute electronically to any other sites claiming to benefit Deputy Durm.
“Please use the official link below if you would like to support Deputy Durm’s loved ones:
“https://cipf.foundation/the-deputy-john-durm-memorial-fund/“
Facebook post from Marion County Sheriff’s Office (IN) at 3:12 p.m. July 11, 2023