A Gary Police officer has been placed on unpaid leave following a Jan. 17 arrest for operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
Corporal John H. Artibey Jr., 43, was arrested following an encounter with Indiana State Police on Interstate 94 in Porter County, according to court documents. Artibey, a Chesterton resident and 20-year veteran of the department, was charged with operating while intoxicated with a prior conviction, a Level 6 felony, and misdemeanor operating while intoxicated.
A Friday release from the Gary Police Department said it took immediate administrative action by placing Artibey on unpaid leave pending the outcome of criminal proceedings and an internal investigation.
“Public trust is the cornerstone of effective policing, and we are committed to preserving it,” said Police Chief Derrick Cannon in a statement on Facebook. “This incident is not a reflection of the Gary Police Department as a whole, nor does it diminish the hard work our officers do every day to keep ur city safe. We will continue to serve with the highest standards and professionalism our community deserves.”
According to charges in Artibey’s most recent case, around 8:45 p.m. Jan. 17, an Indiana State Police Trooper spotted a passenger vehicle stopped on the shoulder of eastbound Interstate 94 at the 17-mile marker.
The arresting officer, according to the charges, said Artibey smelled of alcohol and had bloodshot/glassy eyes. He failed field sobriety tests and had a blood-alcohol level of .122%, according to a portable breathalyzer test. The legal limit in Indiana is .08%.
Court records show that Artibey pled guilty in 2023 to operating a vehicle with a blood-alcohol concentration between .08 and .15, a Class C misdemeanor. Judge Christopher Buckley sentenced him to 60 days in jail, but he already had credit for 1 day served and Buckley suspended the remainder of the term.
In 2021, Artibey received an Officer of the Year commendation at the District One Law Enforcement Awards, based on his actions when he and another officer rescued a woman who was abducted while walking home from work and dragged into an abandoned building in January 2018, according to Post-Tribune archives.
Artibey is scheduled for an initial hearing Feb. 18 before Porter Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Thode, according to an online court docket.
