A Worthington man who just got out of jail less than a month ago, earned a trip back last Thursday. He’s accused of entering a couple’s home taking cash and keys to a truck then taking the truck for a joy ride, mowing down a couple of Main Street trees on the way, leaving ruts and tire marks behind and hitting a parked vehicle before crashing the truck in a field off Terre Haute Road.

Joe James Turpin, 25, of Worthington, was booked in to jail by Worthington Deputy Marshal Russell Walls around 10:50 a.m. Thursday, October 4, after Turpin had been treated for injuries he sustained in the crash.

Officer Walls, the investigating officer on this incident, was dispatched around 12:20 a.m. that morning after the sheriff’s department got a call about a crash close to the corner of Main and Jefferson in Worthington. The caller said a truck had just knocked down a tree and hit their neighbor’s vehicle in front of 3 West Main Street but didn’t stop and kept driving west on Main.

When Walls arrived, there was a white 2004 Dodge minivan sitting sideways in the middle of the street but nobody was injured so he left to look for the suspect vehicle. Driving west, he saw both a road construction barricade and barrel had been knocked down.

Walls checked an area northwest of town, County Road 700 North toward 750 North, but he didn’t see any vehicles out that way so he turned around and headed back into town and on toward Terre Haute Road.

When he turned onto Terre Haute Road, Walls saw a vehicle in a field on the north side of the road with a man standing nearby so he activated emergency lights, advised dispatch of his location and pulled off the side of the road. The man then laid down beside the truck.

Walls approached on foot with his gun drawn but he didn’t get too close. He said he didn’t know why the man had fled, didn’t know if he had weapons, couldn’t see the man’s hands, and though he gave loud commands, the man did not respond. Walls requested an ambulance and told dispatch the man was still breathing but not responding.

When Greene County Sheriff’s Deputy Alan Jackson arrived on the scene to assist, the two moved closer and Walls recognized the man as Joe James Turpin. Turpin then responded, admitted he had been drinking and Walls said Turpin told him a couple of stories about what happened that were later determined to not be true.

Turpin was transported to Greene County General Hospital where he was treated for a cut to his face above his eye that required stitches. He also had numerous minor bruises. Turpin consented to a chemical test and a blood draw was taken at the hospital – results are pending. However, Walls reported a urine screen showed Turpin had a blood alcohol concentration of .126.

In addition to Deputy Jackson, GCSD Deputy Davis Aerne also responded to assist along with Bloomfield Deputy Marshal Jordan Allor and possibly other officers.

The additional officers assisted by interviewing witnesses, photographing and documenting the Main Street crash scenes and making contact with the owner of the truck.

In a narrative document to establish probable cause, Officer Walls asserts that Turpin entered the residence of Cole Parker and Destiny Franklin on North Jefferson Street in Worthington without their permission, while they were sleeping, and took Franklin’s purse containing her wallet which contained her driver’s license, debit card and other cards as well as cash received from her job. Walls said the wallet and cash were found in the pocket of the denim jacket Turpin was wearing. Turpin also allegedly took the keys to Parker’s dark red 2019 Dodge 1500 truck then took the truck, also without permission.

Walls alleges that Turpin then drove the truck recklessly at a high rate of speed through town and on the corner of Main and Jefferson, accelerated through a turn onto Main Street, striking two trees, completely breaking them off at ground level, then continued to accelerate as he hit a minivan owned by Gregory Ray, and left tire marks in the street before continuing on to crash the truck into objects then into the field on the north side of Terre Haute Road.

Walls said the 2019 Dodge truck was totaled, damage to the minivan was in excess of $750 but the money taken was returned to the owner. And records show Turpin has never had a valid driver’s license.

After Turpin was released from the hospital, he was arrested and transported to jail where he was booked in then interviewed. His bond was set at $27,000 surety with ten percent cash allowed.

According to Walls, Turpin admitted he had taken the cash, the keys and the truck without permission, had crashed the truck at several locations before ending up in the field where he climbed out of the rear window then laid down on the ground.

Last Friday, Greene County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Keven McIntosh filed a criminal case against Turpin.

Turpin was scheduled to appear in Greene Superior Court for an initial hearing late Tuesday, when he would be formally charged with nine counts including:

Burglary of a dwelling, a Level 4 felony
Auto theft involving theft of the entire vehicle, a Level 6 felony
Theft, a Class A misdemeanor
Operating a vehicle while intoxicated endangering a person, a Class A misdemeanor
Operating a vehicle while intoxicated, a Class C misdemeanor
Criminal mischief involving damage between $750 and $50,000, a Class A misdemeanor
Knowingly or intentionally operating a motor vehicle without ever having received a license, a Class C misdemeanor
Reckless driving at unreasonable high speed that endangers safety, a Class C misdemeanor
Leaving the scene of an accident, a Class B misdemeanor