Jesse M. Blanton booking photo (via WXIN).
An Indiana prosecutor may be in hot water after allegedly pointing his gun at his roommate during a fight over a dirty sink.
Jesse M. Blanton, 41, is accused of pulling his gun on his roommate early Friday morning, according to Indianapolis Fox affiliate WXIN.
Citing court documents, the station reported that officers were called to the apartment at around 4 a.m. on Friday to a home where they spoke with a roommate of Blanton. The victim, according to WXIN, told police he had gotten up to get water from the kitchen and saw Blanton sitting in the living room.
The victim reportedly said that Blanton had returned from a night out and was “obviously intoxicated” and agitated.
Blanton, a deputy prosecuting attorney, allegedly confronted the roommate “about the sink being dirty.” The roommate, who was reportedly “nervous,” tried to put off the argument until the next day due to the prosecutor’s apparent drunkenness, but Blanton apparently didn’t let it go.
According to the roommate, Blanton followed him down a hallway to his room, then went to his own room, grabbed a handgun, and started pointing the firearm at his roommate, who in turn felt threatened by Blanton’s behavior, WXIN reported.
Blanton was charged with several felonies, according to the outlet.
Delaware County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Hoffman told Law&Crime in an email that he couldn’t comment on the case or investigation, but that “all persons arrested for a criminal offense are presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt at trial.”
Hoffman confirmed that he has asked the court to appoint a special prosecutor in the case “to review whether and what charges should be filed.” He expects that motion to be granted by next week and that an out-of-county prosecutor will be appointed.
“As far as his employment goes, I am reviewing the case and then going to make a final determination on that in the coming days,” Hoffman said. “In the interim, he is not in the office.”
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