MARION COUNTY, Ind. – A deputy with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office in Indiana was fatally beaten on Monday during the medical transport of an inmate to a hospital in Indianapolis.
Deputy John Durm, 61, was beaten within the sally port area at the Adult Detention Center by an inmate identified as 34-year-old Orlando Mitchell. Deputy Durm was rushed to the Eskenazi Hospital where he died as a result of the attack, Sheriff Kerry Forestal said.
After brutally battering the deputy, Mitchell stole the transport van and subsequently crashed it into a utility pole. Responding deputies quickly apprehended him. He is currently in stable condition at Eskenazi Hospital, Breaking 911 reported.
The Marion County Sheriff’s Office provided the following details after Deputy Durm’s death:
“It is with deep sadness that we must report that the Deputy initially involved in the altercation with an inmate has passed away from his injuries. Deputy John Durm faithfully served the people of Marion County as a Deputy Sheriff for almost four decades. In that time, he set himself apart as an honorable and faithful public servant.
“But he was more than that. He was a husband, a father, and a friend. Our hearts are broken for his wife, Ramona, also a dedicated Deputy here at the MCSO, and his children who have continued his legacy of service.”
Mitchell has been in custody since September 2022. He is awaiting trial for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Krystal Walton.
Deputy Durm served in law enforcement for 38 years. He leaves behind a wife, who is also a deputy in the department’s medical division, and four children. One of Durm’s son’s is currently in training with the sheriff’s office, while two others are serving in the U.S. Air Force, WTHR News reported.
