The U.S. Department of Justice says a federal grand jury has indicted two Elkhart Police Department officers for using excessive force against an arrestee.

35-year-old Cory Newland and 30-year-old Joshua Titus are accused of bringing a suspect, identified in the indictment as “M.L.”, into a chair in the booking area with his hands cuffed behind his back. The officers then allegedly hit him in the face repeatedly, causing him to fall backward onto the floor, and then allegedly kept hitting him.

US Attorney Thomas Kirsch says his office is taking the allegations seriously and says the FBI won’t tolerate the “abuse of power” by anyone in law enforcement.

Each faces 10 years in prison and a $250,000 if convicted.

Newland and Titus remain on paid administrative, however documentation, requesting their status be changed to unpaid administrative leave, is being drafted and will be
sent to the Board of Safety.