Court Roundup

Indiana
2 ex-NW Ind.  officers sentenced for gun scheme
HAMMOND, Ind. (AP) — Two former northwestern Indiana police officers have been sentenced to federal prison for using their positions to buy restricted machine guns and laser sights and then illegally sell them over the Internet.
A federal judge said he believed greed drove former Lake County sheriff’s officers Ronald Slusser and Joseph Kumstar to take part in the scheme. Slusser was sentenced Thursday to six years in prison and Kumstar to more than four years.
The Post-Tribune reports Kumstar and Slusser are believed to have made $200,000 from the scheme. Some of the weapons were found during a police raid of a gang in Montreal, with Alabama police finding others on a man after shoot-out with officers.
Lake County Sheriff John Buncich tells The Times that Kumstar and Slusser “betrayed the badge.”

Louisiana
Judge hands former fire chief 63-year sentence
LIVINGSTON, La. (AP) — A state judge has sentenced a former Holden fire chief to 63 years in prison, about two weeks after the chief was convicted of indecent behavior with a juvenile.
The Advocate reports Franklin Dale Church, who formerly served as fire chief of Fire Protection District 10, was convicted on June 14 of nine counts of indecent behavior with a juvenile.
Judge Bruce Bennett sentenced Church Thursday to seven years on each of the nine counts to be served consecutively for a total of 63 years.
“We’re very pleased with the sentence,” District Attorney Scott Perrilloux said. “The judge gave him the maximum. We feel that was appropriate, considering all the victims and how long this had been going on.”
Church, 46, was arrested July 30 on allegations of indecent behavior with a 14-year-old girl, the Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office has said. He was booked on counts of indecency with a juvenile, felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile and contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile.
The counts stem from acts that occurred between March and June 2012, the Sheriff’s Office has said.
Church was accused of tying the girl up and having sex with her, prosecutor Charlotte Herbert has said.
The defendant’s son, Adam Church, already has pleaded guilty to carnal knowledge of a juvenile for acts with the same girl, Herbert has said.