BROWNSTOWN, Ind. — Two people were taken into police custody after he was discovered with a gun a Brownstown Elementary School Friday.
School Resource Officer Levi Caudill saw a man, later identified as Ciaran Couche, sitting in the passenger seat of a parked vehicle in the parking lot. Caudill said he observed the man for an extended period of time before approaching the vehicle to investigate. In doing so, he found a loaded handgun and ammunition stored out of plain sight in the vehicle’s center console.
An investigation that ensued found Couche was waiting for his girlfriend, Angelia Overberg who works as a substitute teacher at the school. Overberg drove both Couche and herself to the school in the morning, and Couche was stayed in the vehicle waiting for Overberg to finish her work.
According to a press release, finding the firearm and ammunition on school grounds made Caudill believe he had enough probable cause to arrest both Couche and Overberg for possession of a firearm on school property.
The release said Caudill acted out of an abundance of caution to ensure the safety of students and staff at the school and the surrounding public.
After the investigation concluded and the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office was consulted, it was determined charges would not be filed.
Indiana Code allows for someone who is legally permitted to possess a firearm to do so on school grounds when it is properly stored out of plain sight inside a locked motor vehicle, as was the case in this investigation.
Police also determined neither Couche nor Overberg intended to use the firearm to threaten or harm anyone at the school.
Neither Couche nor Overberg were listed as inmates in the Jackson County Jail as of his publication.
