By Liz Shepherd
InkFreeNews

Terry Michael Hall

WARSAW — Five witnesses testified during the first day of a three-day jury trial for a Claypool man accused of threatening several people and firing a gun inside a residence.

Terry Michael Hall, 53, 4980 E. 900S, Claypool, is charged with criminal confinement with a deadly weapon, a level 3 felony; three counts of intimidation with a deadly weapon, all level 5 felonies; possession of methamphetamine and criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, both level 6 felonies; resisting law enforcement, a class A misdemeanor; and possession of paraphernalia, a class C misdemeanor.

Hall is being represented by John Barrett, Warsaw. The state’s case is being presented by Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dan Hampton.

In Indiana, a Level 3 felony is punishable by three to 16 years in prison, with an advisory sentence of nine years.

Affidavit of Probable Cause

On Dec. 14, 2020, Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of shots fired inside a Pierceton residence on East Old Road 30. A man said he received a call from a friend about picking him up at a residence.

According to court documents, when the man went to the location, he heard a shot fired from inside the home. The man did not receive any new communication from his friend, leading him to call 911.

Deputies approached the residence, gained a tactical position, and announced their presence. Upon doing so, deputies heard a man yelling. At one point, the man’s friend was pushed out of the residence by Hall.

The friend told deputies Hall was out of control and under the influence of a controlled substance, describing Hall as very agitated and emotional. The friend also said there were three firearms in the home and that a woman was still inside.

While in the home, Hall allegedly shot a single round from a handgun. Due to Hall’s behavior, the friend said he feared leaving the house because he thought he would be shot.

While deputies surrounded the residence, they could hear Hall yelling at the woman. At times, it sounded like Hall was getting physical with the woman; there were several times where deputies heard Hall threatening her. As deputies attempted to communicate with him, Hall went to a window several times while holding a shotgun.

At one point, Hall opened the residence’s door and agreed to speak with a deputy. When he was close enough, the deputy grabbed Hall by the wrist and Hall attempted to pull away from the deputy’s grasp. A taser was then deployed on Hall.

While taking Hall into custody, deputies found a pipe, two speed loaders with .44 caliber ammunition and two spent cartridges from a .44 magnum. They also found a fully loaded .44 magnum pistol and two shotguns inside the home.

Deputies also discovered a hole in the east wall of the residence’s living room from the fired shot. The projectile went through the wall and into the residence’s garage, hitting items inside the garage.

The woman in the home said Hall was irate and confirmed he fired off a shot inside the residence.

Trial Proceedings

Five men and eight women were seated on the jury in Kosciusko Superior Court One shortly after 11 a.m. Monday, April 10, with Judge Karin McGrath presiding.

In his opening statement, Hampton recalled the affidavit of probable cause and described Hall’s hour-long standoff with law enforcement as a “very dangerous and deadly situation.”

“How does this happen in Kosciusko County, our home?” said Hampton. “All of this conduct happened at the hands of Terry Hall.”

Barrett said Hall “made some terrible decisions during a bad day” and noted he both agreed and disagreed with Hampton’s argument. He specifically focused on Hall’s criminal confinement charge, asking how the victim was confined if Hall pushed him out of the house.

“Terry did not criminally confine anyone that day,” said Barrett.

Hampton then began the state’s case by calling Donald Chadwick, who went to the home in December 2020 to pick up his friend and called 911 after hearing a shot fired.

Chadwick said he contacted his friend multiple times when he arrived at the home but did not hear from him. He also heard commotion and loud voices. After hearing the shot, Chadwick called for help. During cross-examination, Chadwick said he didn’t physically witness the incident.

The state’s second witness was the friend Hall pushed out of the residence. In his testimony, the friend said he was at the Pierceton residence hanging out with a woman. The pair were at the home for a couple hours prior to Hall’s arrival.

The friend said he was “freaked out” by Hall waving guns around and had no idea why Hall was irate the day the incident occurred. He also testified Hall fired a gun in a room he was in. When law enforcement showed up, he said Hall pushed him out of the residence’s front door.

In cross-examination, Barrett asked the victim why he thought Hall shot a firearm. The friend said he believed Hall shot the firearm to scare him, but said Hall never told him he couldn’t leave the home.

Two KCSO deputies were the state’s next witnesses. One of the deputies was threatened by Hall during the incident and said he met Chadwick at the East Old Road 30 and CR 650E intersection to obtain more information about what was happening before going to the scene.

The deputy said there was a lot of yelling and screaming inside the home, noting that he also heard a woman who sounded like she was in pain. He also recalled Hall saying “Are you ready to die today?” The deputy estimated around eight to 12 officers responded to the incident since it was a high-priority call.

Thirty-four pictures from the scene, along with physical items including various firearms and a glass smoking device collected after the incident, were submitted as evidence to the court. The submitted pictures included photographs of a spent shell casing and a bullet hole which went from the residence to a garage. Lab test results showed residue found within the smoking device was methamphetamine.

The deputy said because of the nature of the call, the entirety of East Old Road 30 was shut down while officers created a barrier around the residence.

KCSO Deputy Kyle Denton said he planned to use Axel, his K9 unit, to grab Hall but that Axel was unsuccessful in his apprehension due to the amount of vehicles at the scene. Denton described the incident as a “very stressful situation” and said he witnessed Hall actively resist arrest.

At one point, as Denton recalled a firearm being pointed at him, Hall said out loud in court that he “should have taken the shot.”

Following Denton’s testimony and during a moment where the jury was out of the courtroom for a break, McGrath warned Hall about making any further outbursts and said if his behavior continued, he could be removed from the trial.

The state’s fifth and final witness for the day was KCSO Sergeant Kreg Kuhn, who was in charge of supervising the scene.

He also recalled a lot of commotion from inside the home and heard Hall say “Do you want to die today?” Kuhn said the friend who was pushed out of the home told him he believed Hall was “under the influence” and “crazy.”

Kuhn testified about having to seek cover while maintaining conversation with Hall, describing the situation as “dangerous and deadly.” He said the county’s SWAT team was on the way to the scene before Hall was taken into custody.

The trial will continue at 9 a.m. Tuesday, April 11, with more witnesses scheduled to testify.