(Franklin County, IN) – Charges have been re-filed in Franklin County against 32-year-old Dennis R. Poland Jr. of Lawrenceburg in connection with a fatal crash that happened nearly four years ago, following the successful appeal of an evidentiary ruling.
Poland is facing several felonies, including including Operating a Vehicle with a Controlled Substance Causing Death and Reckless Homicide, stemming from a multi-vehicle wreck on April 5, 2022 on U.S. 52 between Cedar Grove and New Trenton that claimed the life of 20-year-old Makenzie Howell of Aurora.
According to the probable cause affidavit, filed December 15, 2022, an Indiana State Police investigation of the accident revealed that Howell’s body was found in a ditch following the crash and it was believed she had been ejected from a vehicle. The other occupant of the vehicle, later identified as Poland, was found to be unconscious and pinned inside.
Investigators obtained a blood sample from Poland at a local hospital and the results of analysis alleged the presence of fentanyl. An arrest warrant was issued for Poland and he made his first court appearance in August 2023. He later posted bond and was released pending trial.
Poland’s attorneys filed a Motion to Suppress in November 2023 that sought to have the results of the blood test excluded from evidence at trial.
Huerkamp filed a response in opposition, citing Mitchell v. Wisconsin, a U.S. Supreme Court case from 2019. A Suppression Hearing was scheduled for December 7, 2023, but Poland failed to appear and the Court issued a warrant for his arrest. He was arrested in July 2024, and brought back to Franklin County to answer for the still-pending charges. In September 2024, his attorneys once again filed a Motion to Suppress on the same evidence, and the Court set the matter for a hearing.
Poland’s attorneys were successful in securing a motion to suppress blood alcohol test results from trial, which was granted in September 2024 by then-Circuit Court Judge Steven Cox. After a series of legal wranglings, the Indiana Court of Appeals reversed the motion to suppress. Franklin County Prosecutor Chris Huerkamp recently re-filed the charges against Poland, who failed to appear at a hearing last week and is considered a fugitive. Franklin Circuit Judge Clay Kellerman has issued a warrant for Poland’s arrest. Huerkamp is urging anyone with knowledge of Poland’s whereabouts to contact local law enforcement.
At the conclusion of the suppression hearing on September 11, 2024, then-Circuit Court Judge Steven Cox granted the Defense motion, which would have had the effect of excluding the evidence of Poland’s blood analysis at trial. As applied, the ruling denied the prosecution the proof it needed to sustain convictions under the most serious allegations, because evidence of the presence of fentanyl is essential toward proving the felony Operating a Vehicle with a Controlled Substance charge. As a result, the prosecution sought to appeal the Judge’s ruling, in order to preserve the opportunity to present its best evidence at trial.
Under Indiana Law, the prosecution has the right to seek an appeal of an adverse evidentiary ruling under only a very limited set of circumstances, including when a Motion to Suppress evidence is granted. Additionally, under the longstanding principle of double jeopardy, the prosecution is not entitled to a new trial once one has commenced, even if an appellate court later determines that an erroneous ruling disadvantaged the State. Under these circumstances, the prosecution must request dismissal of the pending case to pursue such an appeal, which Huerkamp did on September 20, 2024.
The appeal was filed on the same day as the dismissal. Following the submission of numerous briefs by both parties, oral arguments were heard at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on August 29, 2025.
On September 30, 2025, the Indiana Court of Appeals, citing the Mitchell decision among other cases, issued a 29-page decision unanimously reversing the Judge’s ruling on the Motion to Suppress. Poland’s attorneys sought review of the appellate decision by the Indiana Supreme Court, but that was ultimately denied in late January 2026.
The Court of Appeals decision was subsequently certified, which paved the way for Huerkamp to re-file the charges against Poland, no longer subject to the previous order excluding the blood analysis results from evidence at trial.
Huerkamp officially re-filed the charges against Poland on March 3, 2026,
“We fully intend to see this case through from start to finish,” Huerkamp said.
The prosecutor is acknowledging and thanking Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita and his team of attorneys for the successful appeal. The Indiana Attorney General’s Office represents all local
prosecutors’ offices during the criminal appellate process.
An initial hearing on the re-filed charges was scheduled for March 11, 2026, but Poland failed to appear for the hearing and Franklin Circuit Judge Clay Kellerman issued a warrant for his arrest.
Huerkamp is urging anyone with knowledge of Poland’s whereabouts to contact local law enforcement, and says proceedings will resume upon Poland’s arrest.
