A grand jury indicted Chief Michael Willhoite, 48, and Officer Ronald Dickow, 50, on charges of complicity to commit kidnapping, complicity to commit custodial interference and complicity to commit official misconduct, reported WDRB in Louisville.
In April, a judge ordered Adam Horine committed to a mental hospital in Lexington, where he was to undergo a thorough psychiatric assessment after being charged with disorderly conduct and terroristic threatening.
Horine said he was hearing voices, felt suicidal, could not sleep, and wanted to hurt "certain people," according to a social worker who evaluated him.
Instead of transporting Horine to the hospital, Chief Wilhoite instructed officer Dickow to drive Horine 50 miles in a police cruiser to Louisville, where Dickow bought Horine a one-way bus ticket to Florida with money given to him by the chief.
"This just doesn't happen. It's not supposed to happen in our system," David Harris, professor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, told the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting.
"And to have a police officer come in and simply say, 'No, we're not having him get a mental-health evaluation, you're just getting out of here. You're too much trouble. We don't want you here. You're leaving.' I'm sorry, that's not allowed. They don't have the power to do that."
After a 28-hour ride, Horine arrived in Florida. When Kentucky authorities finally realized where he was, they had to issue an arrest warrant in order to extradite him back to the state, charging him with second-degree escape.
