Cary Owsley was found dead in his house on April 7, 2013 when his wife discovered him lying in a chair that had been tipped backward. She also found a gun wrapped in a cloth on the floor.
The Bartholomew County police and the coroner came on the scene shortly after and ruled it a suicide. Statements from Owsley's wife and stepsons pointed to a history of depression and suggestions of suicide to his psychiatrist.
But, Cheryl Owsley Jackson, Cary's sister, believes the investigation was mishandled, and that her brother would never have killed himself.
"The day my brother died, he called his 21-year-old son to come and help him move out of the house," she says. "With his truck backed up to the door, some of his possessions in his truck, we're supposed to believe that he stopped and shot himself. We don't."
Some Claim 'Suspicious Circumstances' Around Owsley's Death
One forensic expert in Louisville, Ky., after hearing of the case, looked into the death scene on his own time. He says the path of the bullet through the body and where the bullet hole was found don't add up.
"If he were sitting in the chair when he was shot, and it goes out and hits the spindles, that is not consistent in the suicide if the bullet hole is associated with the wound, and it would not be," he says.
Smock also says the bullet would not have enough energy to knock Owsley back.
"Based on what I've seen, the inadequate investigation, right now I have a lot of questions," he says.
At a hearing earlier this month at the Bartholomew County courthouse, dozens of residents protested the way the Owsley's case has been handled.
At the hearing, Jackson's attorney argued Owsley's widow, Lisa, should be removed from Cary's estate because of what he called "suspicious circumstances of death." That petition was denied.
Any police officer knows if it's a case where you know people involved, you don't belong on the scene.
Those circumstances include Lisa's ex-husband, E. DeWayne Janes Sr. He was a Bartholomew County sheriff's deputy and was allowed on the scene shortly after Owsley was found. According to police reports, he handled evidence and moved the body.
"Any police officer knows if it's a case where you know people involved, you don't belong on the scene. There's nothing you can do but raise suspicion," Devere Woods, who chairs the criminology department at Indiana State University says.
Woods says with what he has seen of the case, the sheriff's department could have taken steps to stop something like this from happening again.
"If in a particular agency or unit, if officers know there is no accountability then you see this more often," he says.
According to reports from the sheriff's office, Janes had improperly involved himself in cases involving his family members before and after the incident.
Janes retired two days before a scheduled appearance before a board investigating his behavior.
Family Members Hope To Prevent Future Mishandlings
Cheryl Jackson thinks more should be done to stop mishandling investigations in the future.
"A new sheriff came into office and with the threat of being included for having responsibility for the cover-up, he agreed to transfer the file to the FBI," she says.
Newly elected sheriff Matthew Myers last month asked the FBI to look at the investigation. He would not comment on the case until after the FBI makes a decision.
Jackson had previously petitioned the FBI but was denied. Woods says that's typical because family members often don't have a solid grasp on what makes a good investigation.
"Families tend to see conspiracies," Woods says. "They tend to feel justice was not served, and, quite frankly, families are generally not in a good position to evaluate whether the investigation was good or not."
Woods says the FBI will likely look into government corruption or a violation of civil rights if they choose to investigate the case. That decision depends on what they see in the documents.
But Jackson says even if the FBI doesn't come to a different conclusion about her brother's death, she hopes the process will shed light on what she considers a history of police misconduct.
"I just don't want anything like this to happen again," she says. "I want everyone to remember who Cary Owsley was. I want them to remember that, not the way we've had to dissect his death to get where we are today to get the FBI involved."
Here is a timeline of the events in the Cary Owsley case:
Timeline of the Investigation
- April 7, 2013Cary Owsley is found dead in his home by his wife. Reports say she was the only one at the scene when he died.
- May, 2013Cary's sister, Cheryl Owsley Jackson, begins her campaign "Mission for Justice" on Facebook.
- July 20, 2013The Indianapolis Star publishes an article detailing the missteps taken by police in the Owsley investigation.
- July 22, 2013Bartholomew County Sheriff Mark Gorbett suspends three deputies involved in the Owsley investigation.
- October, 2013Owsley's sister asks FBI to look into case. She is denied.
- November 20, 2013Bartholomew County Circuit Court Judge Stephen Reimann allows Cary Owsley's body to be exhumed.
- March, 2014The exhumation and autopsy of Cary's body is completed.
- May, 2014After the exhumation, there is no conclusion on his death based on the deterioration of the body.
- September, 2014Sheriff Gorbett suspends Janes with pay and suggests to a merit board he be fired after he involves himself for the third time in a case involving his family.
- December 15, 2014Deputy DeWayne Janes retires from the force two days before a scheduled board meeting that would have considered terminating him based on his behavior.
- March, 2015Newly elected Bartholomew County Sheriff Matthew Myers sends reports to FBI.
- April, 2015Owsley's son, Logan Owsley, files a federal complaint against Bartholomew County sheriff's officials and Coroner Larry Fisher.
