Stun-gunned woman to serve 10 days in jail

A Lima woman who was stun-gunned by police for causing a disturbance during this summer’s St. Gerard Festival avoided trial by pleading guilty Thursday in Lima Municipal Court to two of three misdemeanor charges filed against her.

Ashley Hardy, 31, accepted a deal from prosecutors for resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

In exchange for her pleas, prosecutors dismissed a count of obstructing official business.

Judge David Rodabaugh followed a recommendation contained in the plea agreement and sentenced Hardy to 10 days in jail. An additional 80 days of jail time were suspended upon the condition that Hardy have no similar violations during the next two years.

Hardy was fined $150 on the resisting arrest charge and $50 for disorderly conduct.

A jury trial was scheduled for Thursday but was canceled after Hardy accepted the plea deal.

Hardy was originally charged for failure to leave the festival when asked by festival officials and police after she repeatedly shouted obscenities.

Prosecutor Nicole Smith said police Sgt. Nick Hart instructed Hardy to cease the vulgar language or leave the grounds, “and then she cursed at the officer. When told she was being placed under arrest, she began to run and that’s when Sgt. Hart deployed his Taser.”

When (Hart) told me to leave, I said ‘that’s fine,’” Hardy told the court. “The argument came when he told me to go outside the festival and then continued to stand there and say things to me. I didn’t curse; I just talked to him about police harassment and the type of stuff police officers do around here.”

Steve Chamberlain, Hardy’s court-appointed attorney, said the situation was one that “got out of hand quickly.”