Illinois man pleads guilty in attack on 2 Indiana troopers

CROWN POINT, Ind. (AP) - An Illinois man has pleaded guilty to attacking and injuring two Indiana state troopers during a roadside scuffle along a northwest Indiana highway ramp.

Aaron Morrison, 23, of Harvey, Illinois, pleaded guilty Tuesday to a felony battery charge against a public safety official in the August 2020 incident, The (Northwest Indiana) Times reported.

Morrison was a front-seat passenger in a vehicle Trooper Nicole Maenza was checking on in Gary after she saw it had stopped without any hazard lights activated in the left lane of a ramp from Interstate 65 to westbound Interstate 80/94.

Morrison admitted in his plea agreement that he got out of the car and when Maenza attempted to handcuff him, he shoved her and pulled her to the ground. Morrison also admitted that when Trooper Alyssa Partyka arrived and attempted to handcuff him he shoved her and punched her in the face.

If a Lake County judge accepts Morrison's plea agreement, he could face a possible sentence of six months to 2 1/2 years in jail or prison, with an advisory sentence of one year.

The length of his sentence would be argued by Lake County Deputy Prosecutor Maureen Koonce and defense attorney Joseph Curosh Jr.