MIAMI COUNTY — A flower farm nestled between U.S. 24 and U.S. Business 24 in rural Miami County has big dreams for future growth.

Phoenix Petals & Pies offers a patch of self-serve annuals and perennials, dried flowers, floral arrangements, and five-inch pies made by owner Jayme Arthur. Located at 5615 E. 200 N. in Peru, the farm’s rural location is quiet and serene.

Jayme and her husband purchased their property three years ago, and Jayme planted the flower garden last year. When the flowers thrived, she knew she wanted to continue expanding and open to the public.

“Well, this is perfect for us because we love this place. We feel like it’s a little bit of heaven, so we like people to come and visit,” Jayme said.

Jayme works as an administrative assistant at Maconaquah Middle School, but plans to retire within the next three years. Tending to the flower garden is a peaceful activity for the couple, who love spending their evenings outdoors.

“This is my happy place. It’s kind of something we can do it together, but also this is just something that I really enjoy. I love being outside. I don’t like being indoors – I like hot weather,” Jayme said.

The couple divides many of the chores. Jayme loves to weed, and Mike doesn’t mind being the “grunt” and doing some of the less enjoyable chores.

“We love to be outside and work with our hands, and you know, it’s peaceful. It’s quiet out here, and it’s therapeutic for us. You know, we have music on most of the time and it’s just like it’s medicine for the soul really,” Mike said.

The name of the business is particularly meaningful to the Arthurs. The couple went through a tragic loss several years prior, and said they’re grateful for how they were supported through it.

“We had a devastating house fire about three or four years ago, and through God’s grace and the grace of the community, we came up out of the ashes and we were able to get this place, and we feel like it’s a piece of heaven. So that’s where phoenix came from,” Jayme said.

Jayme is planning to expand her perennial garden, plant pumpkins and gourds, build a greenhouse, start flowers from seed, and begin promoting her business more widely. She’s done floral arrangements for baby showers and funerals, and hopes to continue working with new clients.

When she retires, Jayme looks forward to sharing her “piece of heaven” with more customers.

“We’re just so happy with it though,” Jayme said. “Everyone that has came has been really kind and very supportive.”

MIAMI COUNTY — Sometimes all it takes to transform a weapon of destruction to a weapon of peace is a fresh coat of paint and a new mission. For the Pink Jet, which departed Peru Friday, that coat of paint is pink, and the mission is to bring awareness to breast cancer.

The Pink Jet is a Czech trainer that has been repurposed to fly in air shows across the country. The jet is owned by Aerial Angels, a California non-profit founded by Steve Oakley and his wife, Jamie, who were inspired to form the organization after seeing friends and family battle with breast cancer. 

“We have close friends who are fighting breast cancer right now, and several of my clients have gone through this. You know, it’s just something that touches almost everyone’s life, right? It’s hard to find a person that cancer in general, but specifically breast cancer, hasn’t touched,” Oakley said.

Early detection is a key factor in reducing breast cancer deaths, which is what makes raising awareness so important. According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer has a 5-year relative survival rate of 99% when caught in its earliest stages.

With those statistics in mind, the Oakleys had their mission. Now, they just had to find a way to get people’s attention. That’s where the jet comes in.

Air shows such as the OshKosh AirVenture, which The Pink Jet flew at this past weekend, attract hundreds of thousands of spectators — in 2023, the show set a new record with 677,000 attendees.

“It gives us a unique way to raise awareness, you know, and this jet really symbolizes survivors. It’s a symbol of strength, compassion, hope and resilience, which really underscores every survivor,” Oakley said.

Pretty in pink

One of the largest expenses for the Aerial Angels was the painting of the jet. According to Stephanie Goetz, one of the pilots, painting an airplane can cost tens of thousands of dollars. As soon as the non-profit received their L-39 Albatros, they began looking for help with a paint job.

However, that search didn’t last long. Oakley sent an email to Barbara Baldwin, CEO of Dean Baldwin Painting, explaining his vision for The Pink Jet. Within 10 minutes, he received a response from Barbara saying they’d be happy to donate the painting of the jet.

Dean Baldwin Painting’s Peru location at Grissom Aeroplex has been open since 2013. The 156,000 square foot, full-service painting facility has 120 employees, and provides services to planes as large as the Boeing B747-8.

The Aerial Angels unveiled The Pink Jet at the Grissom Aeroplex Friday, after Dean Baldwin Painting finished the project. The team of painters was hand-picked, and the leader of the crew, Andres Cornelio Sr., was the first civilian to take a flight.

The organization called the unveiling a birthing — a symbol of the jet’s new life as a force for good. The Oakleys and Goetz all expressed their gratitude toward Dean Baldwin Painting for giving the plane the gift of an exciting future.

“We thought that it would be a great idea to kind of transform it from a weapon of destruction to a weapon of peace, and hope, and compassion,” Oakley said.

Female flyers

The jet is flown by an all-female roster of pilots, one of which is Stephanie “Boss” Goetz. She was the first to fly the plane after its fresh paint job, and also flew the plane for its public debut at AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisc.

Goetz’s mother was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer last year and went through numerous surgeries and rounds of radiation therapy before she was finally cancer-free. For Goetz, the opportunity to use her aviation skills and the platform she has developed to spread awareness for breast cancer.

“Aviation is something that is such an important part of my life, and it fills me with the most joy, happiness, elation, and adventure,” Goetz said. “My other big passion is philanthropy — giving back and helping people, especially those who are less privileged. So, to get to be able to do both of those, I just pinch myself.”

Goetz learned about the non-profit from her friend and fellow pilot Heather “Lucky” Penney. According to The Pink Jet’s website, Penney was one of the first U.S. female fighter pilots and was one of the two pilots assigned to a suicide mission on 9/11.

Penney and Col. Marc Sasseville were told to fly their jets into the rogue plane headed toward Washington D.C. The passengers on the plane ultimately overpowered the hijackers and forced them to crash the plane into a field in Pennsylvania.

Vicky Benzing is an accomplished pilot, skydiver, aerobatic performer, and air racer that has won numerous racing titles, set records, and become a sought-after pilot in air shows across the country. During her 40-year career, Benzing has logged over 10,000 flight hours and 1,300 parachute jumps.

The all-female team of pilots do more than just fly the plane, however. According to the organization’s website, the three pilot’s “flying skills, grit and courage inspire young women to reach for the skies.”

In the future, the organization hopes to add four to five more pink jets to their fleet flown by an all-female roster of aerobatic pilots. For now, The Pink Jet has a busy summer of air shows and parades — a running start to its new life.

Editor’s note: To safeguard the identity of the minor in this article, the name “Luke” has been used in place of the juvenile’s real name.

When Luke ended up in trouble again, he wasn’t expecting another chance.

After being placed on probation after his last offense, he was told that another mistake would lead to a more serious consequence – residential placement. Luke said he experiences addiction and has tried to stay sober, but has had trouble in the past.

So, when it happened again, Luke knew what to expect.

“I was super anxious because I’d been on probation before, and I was told that if any situation happened again, that I would be sent to residential,” Luke said.

However, something vastly different took place.

Luke ended up in the county’s new juvenile diversion program, the result of new funding from the state that places an emphasis on reducing interactions with the formal justice system.

“It was like a thousand-pound weight was off my chest,” Luke said.

Now, Luke is able to meet with a skills trainer that coaches him through his week and gives him someone to talk to about what’s going on in his life. He’s been able to stay sober for longer than before and plans to pursue a degree in computer programming after completing his high school diploma.

A new approach

The three grants secured by Miami County were created as part of a larger effort in Indiana to follow data-driven practices throughout the justice system. The Juvenile Justice Reform Task Force submitted a package of recommendations to the Indiana Legislature in 2021, which set into motion a variety of grant programs and policies.

The two main grant programs are the juvenile diversion program, and the juvenile community alternatives program, which are supplemented by an additional behavioral health grant. With maximum awards of $85,000 each, the grant funding expands many of the constraints the probation office previously dealt with.

The diversion and community alternatives grants work together to prevent interactions with the formal justice system and provide alternatives that are based on research. Mandy Mavrick, chief probation officer for the county, said the “based on research” part is key.

“And if you look at research – that’s where these programs are derived from – what we’ve been doing forever, the research is not good. I mean, it’s just filling up prisons and putting people in jail. So, there’s a huge push from adults as well as juvenile offenders, adolescent offenders, to revamp that system,” Mavrick said.

The Indiana Criminal Justice Institute (ICJI) compiles data for risk factors associated with juvenile delinquency for their three-year plan. In the most recent plan, Indiana leads Midwestern states in the number of low-income working families, is the third worst in the region for child poverty, and children in Indiana experience abuse and neglect at a rate twice the national average.

Rural areas were identified as particularly underfunded in the legislature’s report, which led them to adopt a population-based funding mechanism that focuses on rural communities.

The grant programs arrived at the county level early this year, after a narrow application window closed and the funding was awarded. Almost immediately, Mavrick was able to hire additional staff for the county, including two case managers and a therapist. That ability to provide in-house services was something Judge Jacob Winkler said was not possible prior to the reforms.

“We have never had that ability. We have diverted kids in the past, those low risk, first-time-offense type situations, but we have never had the ability to actually provide in-house services,” Winkler said.

The availability of services extends beyond juveniles who are part of the programs. Mavrick said mental health resources are also available to family members.

“We actually have a therapist that comes here once a week that is covered by the grant, that offers free mental health treatment, free evaluations for the kid and the family. So, it’s all encompassing for everyone involved – even siblings,” Mavrick said.

In Miami County, diverting low-risk juvenile offenders to mental health resources has shown early successes. Mental health is just one part of the new programs – the juveniles who participate have planted flowers around the courthouse, learned how to budget, and more.

“Our goal is to develop relationships in the community, and to change the stigma around juveniles and offenders in general, because a lot of times, they’ve made a mistake. They’re upset, especially with kids, and they’re very impulsive. Their brain’s still developing,” Mavrick said.

Scientifically speaking, children continue to develop through age 25. The frontal lobe, which is responsible for impulse control, is the last part of the brain to fully develop. The National Institute of Health says the immaturity of the brain through adolescence is a factor which could lead to risk-taking behaviors.

However, accountability plays a large role in the county’s new approach as well. The grants expand the use of restorative justice and aim to repair harm through conversations between victims and offenders. According to recent studies, these conversations are particularly impactful for victims, who experience “deep and significant emotional change” as a result.

For juvenile offenders, confronting the individual or groups they harmed can illustrate the direct relationship between their actions and the effects they have on the victim. Keira McKinley is a case manager and leads the county’s restorative justice program and has observed how the process leads to better outcomes for all parties.

“They’re addressing what they’ve done, and now they’re working toward making it better. So, it’s creating empathy, it’s creating compassion. With these community service opportunities that we’re hoping to have, they can develop working skills, resume skills, and they can form connections within the community. And when people have connections to the community, they’re less likely to cause harm to the community,” McKinley said.

Offenders and victims work together to create a restitution plan during the process, which reframes justice as a repair to the harm rather than as a punishment. Restitution can include volunteering for an organization, repairing property damage, and more. Data shows that restorative justice reduces the likelihood a juvenile will commit another offense. McKinley said a large reason why it is so effective is because kids, by nature, have room to grow.

“I think a big part of it is that they are kids. So, they haven’t had the chance to really grow into their habits. They’re a little bit more, you know, changeable – they’re a little bit more open. And kindness, I think, touches them much more than adults,” McKinley said.

The probation department is hopeful that using these research-based methods will create lasting change in the children they work with each day. The staff said they are all adjusting to the new structure but are excited to try something new.

“But in the end, if this is done successfully, I mean, we’ve got 50 years of research from people that have been doing these programs that recidivism goes down, harm to communities goes down, [and] the expense on the community; it goes down drastically,” Mavrick said.

“It has positive lifelong implications for these kids who do participate in these programs. They don’t go on to being in court or criminals. They’re in the community, and they become productive members of society,” McKinley added. “That’s our goal”

PERU — The home of an iconic Peru resident and champion for women’s suffrage was put on the map Saturday, with the dedication of a historical marker remembering the life of Marie Stuart Edwards.

The marker sits in front of a yellow house at 123 W. Main St., where Edwards lived from 1917 to 1926. During this time, she served as the president of the state Woman’s Franchise League, and later as the first vice-president of the national League of Women Voters, which still exists today. During her tenure at both organizations, the headquarters were moved to Peru.

Edwards was a hugely influential suffragist on the state and national stage and would regularly hold tea parties and meetings in the home, inviting like-minded women to discuss their activities and how to further their agenda.

Through her life, Edwards’ work varied widely. She advocated for women’s right to vote across the country, as well as passing legislation to protect women and children, lobbying for public sanitation, working for disarmament, and advocating for prison rehabilitation and education reform, according to the marker.

But despite her prominence, Regine Brindle, who did the research for the marker, said at one point she had no idea who Marie Stuart Edwards was.

“When I first heard her name, I just thought she was just another lady, and her story was blown out of proportion. She was just a small-town lady,” Brindle said.

That impression faded quickly. As Brindle began looking into the life of Edwards, combing through letters, news articles, and photos at the Miami County Museum to assemble Edwards’ story, her admiration for the woman grew. She began realizing that Edwards had an energy that pulled the national movement toward Peru. A 1921 article in the Philadelphia Public Ledger awed at her ability to influence Washington from the small town of Peru.

“She made the world come to her. She uses the telegraph, the telephone, the posts, and is in touch with her organizations in Texas and California just as simply as if she were in Washington,” the article said.

During her research, Brindle learned that Edwards and her family lived in a house on West Main Street in Peru, across the street from where most believed they had lived. She approached the current owners, Jason and Denise Gornto, and told them about the connection she had made.

“When [Brindle] first said that Marie Stuart Edwards lived here, we said, ‘No she didn’t.’ If you look at the ownership record, or the abstract, her name’s not listed there, or her husband’s,” Jason Gornto said.

However, Brindle had discovered the house was owned by Edwards’ cousin in-law, Elbert Shirk. Most assumed Edwards and her husband lived in the mansion near Hood Street when they returned to Peru, but Brindle found documents that placed the family at 123 W. Main Street, now owned by the Gorntos.

“We’ve always loved the idea of a historical home, but we didn’t know how much history was actually involved in it when we bought it,” Denise Gornto said. “We always want equality and to push women’s rights – our daughter just registered to vote – and those types of things now hold a little bit more meaning.”

The marker has just under the maximum of 370 characters inscribed on each side. Nicole Poletika, who represented the Indiana Historical Bureau at the dedication, said the work of Edwards goes far beyond what the marker could contain.

“I have done lots of women’s history markers, and she has been one of the hardest to sum up in terms of her significance. It seems like she had an iron in every fire…” Poletika said during the dedication.

Although Edwards’ work was wide-reaching, Brindle said her passion was always for voting and civic involvement. To her, voting was the means necessary for other social changes – the domino effect that gave women a voice for change.

“Her whole life was devoted to giving a voice to a lot of people and, you know, her work with the suffrage movement was to give a voice to women so that they could better their society in general,” Brindle said.

Brindle is one of those voices, thanks to Edwards. After immigrating from Belgium in 1979, just nine years after Edwards died, Brindle said there was one main reason she became a naturalized citizen.

“[Voting] is very pertinent, because that is the only reason why I became a naturalized citizen – so that I would be able to vote. I know a few other people who are naturalized Americans, and it’s very important to them as well. It’s important to make sure that other people don’t run your life,” Brindle said.

Despite all that is known about Edwards, there is still more to be discovered. According to Brindle, there are boxes of documents at the Library of Congress which have never been digitized.

The group of volunteer researchers, who call themselves “Miami County Indiana Worth Remembering,” plans to install more markers in the county and continue recognizing the work of women and other historical figures in the community.

Their next marker is planned for the headquarters of the Indiana Women’s Franchise League at Price Law Offices, which is already recognized but does not have a marker. For Brindle and others who continue searching through the forgotten stories of Miami County, the prospect of finding a new piece of history in those documents is thrilling.

“It is the funnest thing,” Brindle said. “There is nothing like feeling like you had that last piece of the puzzle; that you can put that last piece of the puzzle into the big picture.”

Through piecing together the “big picture” of Edwards’ life, Brindle has come to know Edwards in a unique way. Though the two are separated by the fog of history, Brindle has a relationship with the woman unlike any other.

“Marie is my hero,” Brindle said. “I just wish I could have met her.”

Peru’s newest food offering, A Cuban & A Half, is set to open Tuesday, with a buzz already surrounding their menu of traditional Cuban dishes. Hilda Lennon and her daughter Lyndi Cook hope to bring a taste of their family tradition to Peru and give back through their distinct flavors.

The story of the restaurant begins with a rowboat and a risky escape from the Castro regime. Lennon said her father fled Cuba in 1961 by taking a rowboat during the night and were eventually able to bring the rest of the family to the United States in 1963. She began to cook at a young age and learned from her mother, who would host large family gatherings – many of which centered around food.

“My mom cooked at home every day,” Lennon said. “Everybody just liked her food; my husband liked it and my kids liked it, and soas my mom aged, you know, I kind of took over and I’d cook and feed her and take her food.”

Cook, the “half” in the restaurant’s name, said she’s been trying to convince her mother to start cooking for others. When the kitchen space at 7 South became available, Cook and Lennon jumped.

“I’ve been trying to get her to do a food truck, but the timing was never right. But when we saw the ad for the kitchen opening up, we thought, ‘Let’s go look and see,’ and didn’t go in there thinking much of it,” Lennon said. “It just all came about quickly,” Cook added.

Cuban food mainly revolves around staples like rice, beans, and plantains, and incorporates flavors from both Spanish and Caribbean cuisine. The menu for the first week features picadillo and puerco asado, as well as a la carte options ranging from Cuban sandwiches to yuca with mojo. They plan to rotate each week so customers can try a wide range of foods.

“We’re not spicy, we’re seasoned,” Lennon said. “Your oreganos, your cumin, your garlic. Nothing ever comes out of my kitchen spicy.”

The new food offering is different from many of the restaurants in the area – most focus on Mexican, Chinese, or American cuisine. Cook said the addition of Cuban food to the area will give Peru residents a new flavor.

“I mean we need variety here,” Cook said. “My mom’s always talked about how accepting the community was when they moved here, so we want to bring something here and go back to our roots and pay homage to the ones who have passed before us.”

The pair announced the restaurant with a Facebook post Thursday, Feb. 22, and said their first pickup date would be Tuesday, March 5. The buzz from the announcement was encouraging to both Lennon and Cook.

“I guess I’ve just been really surprised at the response,” Lennon said. “… I think the uniqueness is what’s going to get the curiosity of people.”

Her daughter said the positive comments and excitement from the community helped them know they would be successful.

“When we put it out there and saw the response, I think that totally sold her on, like, ‘OK, this is going to work.’ No one has ever not liked [her food]. They might not like one thing, but there’s always something they like – and they’ll request it.”

The menu will be released each Wednesday, and ordering will be open via Facebook until Saturday at 9 p.m. Orders can then be picked up Tuesday afternoon from the location at 7 South. They plan to have a small seating area and hope to eventually expand seating outside.

After over two and a half years and four days of testimony, the State of Indiana has finally rested its case against Mitchell Page, who is charged with the 2021 murders of Jessica Sizemore, Jessiah Hall, and Sizemore’s 4-year-old daughter Rae’Lynn Sizemore. During the jury trial, detectives, investigators, eyewitnesses, and experts testified, bringing new information to light about a crime that left three dead in a Peru mobile home park.

Investigators believe the three were killed around 2 p.m. on May 16, 2021, and suffered from gunshot wounds to the head. A 2-year-old child and the family’s two dogs were left alone in the home until five days later, when the officers responded to a welfare check on Jessica Sizemore and discovered the scene.

On Tuesday around 3 p.m., the jury reached a verdict and convicted Page on all three counts of murder. Miami County Prosecutor Jeff Sinkovics told the Peru Tribune he was proud of the work done by everyone on the case.

“I’d just like to thank the Miami County Sheriff’s Department and the Indiana State Police. They did a hell of an investigation, gathered the evidence, solved the crime quickly. And then I’d like to thank my staff here at the prosecutor’s office,” he said. “…I cannot say how proud I am of the case we put together. Peter Diedrichs, Courtney Alwine, and Jennifer Kiefer; they did some amazing work on this case and they deserve the credit — the police and the deputy prosecutors.”

Setting the scene

In the first two days of the trial, responding officers from the Miami County Sheriff’s Department and crime scene investigators from the Indiana State Police detailed the scene of the crime exactly as they found it the night of May 21.

Deputy James Bean was the first witness called by prosecutors, and responded to the dispatch for a welfare check on Jessica Sizemore. Bean said he approached a window at the residence with a flashlight, shining it into the living room. Once the room was illuminated, Bean saw the bodies of Jessica Sizemore, Jessiah Hall, and Sizemore’s daughter, Rae’Lynn.

As he scanned the room with his flashlight, a young child popped up from the corner of the room. Bean told jury members that he immediately kicked the door in, grabbed the child and put him over his right shoulder, and performed a protective sweep of the residence using a pistol in his left hand.

After Bean had discovered the bodies of the three deceased, he called for additional units who arrived on scene shortly after. Chet Sites, another deputy with the Miami County Sheriff’s Office, continued the protective sweep while Bean assessed the two-year-old child for injuries. Deputy Creighton Howell accompanied the child to Dukes Memorial Hospital and told jury members that the child appeared to be dehydrated and smelled strongly of urine.

Over 3,000 photos were taken of the crime scene, according to Indiana State Police Sgt. Jason Page. Page testified for over two hours, presenting photos of the crime scene, including photos of the deceased.

Page said the trailer was dirty and had many items misplaced, with boxes of spaghetti ripped open and spilled on the floor, torn pizza boxes in different rooms, and a coffee maker that was tipped over. He noted several areas of the home had small red stains, which presumptively tested positive as blood.

Page also noted that he recovered clumps of hair from around the home, and that several of the bodies were missing hair in areas which did not appear to be shaved. A 9mm cartridge case was also recovered from the residence and was sent to an Indiana State Police Lab for testing, according to Page.

The bodies of the deceased were photographed in the positions they were found. Page said the bodies were heavily discolored, which he took as a sign they had been deceased for some time.

Indiana State Police Crime Scene Investigator Brian Olehy was assigned to attend and collect evidence during the autopsies of the three deceased and told the jury that one projectile was recovered from the body of Jessica Sizemore, two from Jessiah Hall, and one projectile was found later from the body of Rae’Lynn Sizemore.

Eyewitnesses and neighbors

A contractor, Matthew Wilson, told jurors that he was working on a wooden deck at another mobile home near the scene of the crime on May 16, 2021, when he thought he heard gunshots.

Wilson told jurors he believed he heard gunshots around 2 p.m., but was unsure since nobody in the surrounding area seemed to react to the sound. He also said he saw a man enter the home of Jessica Sizemore and Jessica Hall, leaving a child in the black truck.

Jennifer and Michael Abair, who lived near Sizemore and Hall, also testified Thursday. Michael said he was laying down after unpacking belongings in their home, when he believed he heard three gunshots. According to Jennifer, the two went outside the home and observed nothing out of the ordinary in the neighborhood – kids playing outside and riding bikes, as well as a contractor working on a wooden deck as he had been earlier that day.

Another witness, Sandra Jones, said she heard Sizemore and Page arguing in the late morning of May 16 about a trip to Florida, which investigators say was supposed to occur May 23. According to phone evidence, Page was planning to take he and Jessica’s daughter, Harley, on a trip to Florida.

‘I wouldn’t do that to anybody’

The focal point of Thursday’s testimony was a two-hour video of Mitchell Page’s interview with Indiana State Police detectives, in which Page repeatedly denies his involvement in the killings.

The interview with Page occurred at the Flora Police Department, where Bob Burgess, first sergeant of investigations at the Indiana State Police, and Mike Rogers, detective sergeant at the Miami County Sheriff’s Department, had agreed to meet him. Page agreed to be interviewed by police and turned over his phone for examination.

During the interview, investigators began by questioning Page about his relationship with Jessica Sizemore, taking a special interest in the custody agreement between the two. According to Page, the two had dated for a total of seven months and split up two months before the birth of their child, Harley.

He told investigators they had a split custody agreement, and that he paid about $120 in child support each month. In the interview, investigators questioned Page about potential changes in his custody agreement due to a move planned by Sizemore and Hall.

Page also confirmed that he saw a contractor working on a deck across the street when he picked up his daughter, Harley – that contractor testified earlier that he had seen Page walk into the home and heard gunshots. Page also confirmed that he bought a handgun at Gander Mountain in Lafayette but told the detectives he had never fired it.

After about 45 minutes, investigators began pressing Page about his alleged involvement in the crime. Page told the investigators, “I have nothing to do with any of that,” and “I wouldn’t do that to anybody.” The detectives told Page they wanted to know why this happened, to which he responded, “There is no ‘why’ this happened.”

After the interview, detectives went to the residence of Page’s father, who he lived with, and served search warrants on the property, two vehicles, and Page’s DNA. A 9mm handgun was found in a trailer beside the property, which was recovered by investigators and tested for the presence of blood.

Following digital footprints

New details also emerged during the trial about the communication between Page and Sizemore, which was typically frequent. Digital forensic examiners presented evidence including text messages, location history, call logs, and more to the jury – all of which suddenly went dark after May 16.

Examiners who gained access to the phones of Jessica Sizemore, Jessiah Hall, and Mitchell Page attempted to put together a timeline of activity, which was frequent. Wendell Beachy, an investigator with the Indiana State Police, told jurors that Page and Sizemore typically exchanged about 14-15 messages each week.

However, Page had made no attempts to contact Sizemore after May 16 – the day which investigators believe she was killed. Beachy also said the call log stored on Page’s phone only contained history from May 20 forward, and that call logs from AT&T showed activity prior to that point.

According to Beachy, Page’s Google account was missing location information between May 3 and May 21. Beachy said the account contained information consistently as far back as 2018 without a noticeable gap until that time.

The last message from either Sizemore or Hall was sent around 1:33 p.m. on May 16, and was an outgoing text from Sizemore to her brother, Matthew Sizemore, which read, “I love you bub.” The message she received in return, “Good seeing both of you,” just minutes later, was never read.

Jessica also received a call from Mitchell Page, who was saved as “Harley’s Dad” on her phone, around noon that same day. According to phone records, Page made no other attempts to communicate with her after the call.

‘… it seemed like he had a lot on his mind”

Page’s brother-in-law, Colin Nichols, also testified in the trial. He told the jury that he took a day trip with Page to a living history festival near Gary on May 15, 2021. He said Page brought his pistol with him because Page “didn’t trust Gary,” and put it under one of the seats of Nichols’ vehicle.

After they returned from the festival and parted ways, Page text Nichols he had left his “Pepé Le Pew Pew” under the seat of his vehicle. Nichols told jurors the term is used to refer to guns on social media without risking censorship or demonetization. The two met that evening for Page to get the pistol from the vehicle.

The next day, May 16, Page went to Nichols’ residence to wake him up for a birthday party around 3 p.m. When Nichols was asked whether anything seemed odd with Page, he said he did seem different.

“At first I didn’t notice anything, but later on he seemed down, depressed. Just like he had a lot on his mind,” Nichols testified.

The state rests

The state’s presentation of evidence ended Tuesday morning around 9 a.m., beginning the process of drafting final instructions for the jury. Judge Timothy Spahr granted three of four requests from the defense for additional instructions, including an instruction for a lesser included offense – involuntary manslaughter. Spahr also granted a request for an instruction regarding mere presence, which states that a person being present during the time of a crime does not necessarily mean they committed the crime.

In closing arguments, the state rehashed the information given by each of the witnesses. The defense focused on questioning the timeline of events and the eyewitness accounts, saying there was a possibility that Page was not where they believed he was.

The jury was given instructions around noon Tuesday and deliberated for about three hours Tuesday, before finding Page guilty on all three counts of murder.

Local artist Patrick Redmon opened his newest exhibit, “Form from Chaos” at the Kokomo Art Center October 19, which celebrates the process of creating art and the renewed joy it has brought Redmon.

Kokomo Art Center Curator Lesley Wysong said the collection of pieces, which range from large-form paintings to prints of AI-created illustrations, has generated a unique response from visitors and artists alike.

“I think they were just intrigued by what he’s doing. Like I said, it’s so different than what they normally see. … It’s almost got a story to the artwork, and people can enjoy that I think. It’s not so literal where you look at it and say, ‘Oh, it’s a barn.’ His [art] is almost mystical.”

Redmon said the title of the exhibition, “Form from Chaos,” has driven his art for some time. He explained that the exploration of “pareidolia,” or the human tendency to perceive faces and figures in random patterns, has allowed him to begin enjoying art again.

“That was a technique that got me back into art, when I had kind of quit for a while. Because it was a joyful process. I liked the process of discovery, of finding these forms that just appeared out of nowhere – seemingly out of the chaos of painting,” Redmon said.

He began using more traditional media like painting and drawing to create large pieces of art with many colors, and loose forms that seem to emerge from the canvas. Redmon described the process as free-flowing and spontaneous.

“I just free painted. And whatever came, came. And then eventually I developed the skill to kind of articulate those objects so that other people could also see them; to outline the form, to shade the form, and that kind of thing. I don’t know ahead of time how I’m going to color them. … So to me that’s still a joyful process,” Redmon said.

As he continued experimenting with painting, he was drawn to artificial intelligence’s ability to rapidly take ideas and create visual representations of the prompts. While the process is different, he enjoys the unexpected nature of creating the art.

“I think the AI is so fast at articulating the idea, but you don’t actually know how it’s going to look. Whereas with the painting, it does take a lot more personal investment of time and energy to get the image you want, but you can get basically exactly what you want the first time,” he said.

The connection between traditional media and artificial intelligence may not be immediately evident, but Redmon said the joy he gets from the process is similar. That’s what has driven his experimentation.

“To me, that is a similar joy, in that you can start with this idea but you really have no clue how the computer itself is going to articulate it. Sometimes it’s comical, sometimes it’s really cool, sometimes it’s just interesting. … It gives me an idea that I would not have thought of myself, which could be used for further art projects,” he said.

At the opening reception of the exhibit Oct. 21, Redmon set up a laptop with the AI art generator he used to create his work, “Starryai.” Wysong said visitors young and old gathered around the computer to experiment with the app.

“There were people all ages. In fact, I had someone that was 90 sitting there on the laptop and doing it. … People were kind of standing and waiting, they all wanted to do that, which I found intriguing. I thought, boy, this is going to take us in a new direction, I think. Not that everybody’s going to generate AI art, but I think they were intrigued by the fact that you can,” Wysong said.

Redmon said the media tends to focus on the negative aspects of artificial intelligence, but he thinks the technology has potential to inspire others to create art. He teaches art at Maconaquah Middle School, and uses AI in his classes and is passionate about exposing people to the possibilities the technology has.

“As an art teacher, I love to see people create. So that was really interesting. I saw several people throughout the night that probably never would have done this on their own actually sit down, type in prompts and create art. … Now they have a new tool which allows them to articulate an idea that never would have been shared before,” Redmon said.

Redmon’s passion for community is also visible throughout the exhibit. 48 prints of AI-generated art are being sold to fund a scholarship for art students, and several of the pieces will be displayed in Peru at the conclusion of the exhibit. A tiger mural will hang in Peru High School, and a mural of Gabriel Godfroy and the Miami homelands will hang outside the Miami Nation of Indiana’s tribal headquarters in downtown Peru.

Redmon said he began creating these large pieces as a way to make art more visible in the community and inspire others to create.

“I think the more art we have in our community, the more artistic we become. Because it shows people that you can appreciate art, it shows them that they can do art, and that they can have some impact of just hanging a picture in the community,” Redmon said.

Wysong was particularly drawn to the large paintings that Redmon created for the exhibit, specifically one titled “Galaxy Traffic Control Officer.” Painted on half a ping pong table and mounted in a room with color-changing lights and a blacklight, the three figures depicted in the painting surface and descend into the dark background.

Wysong said she sat in the room one day for over half an hour, watching as the painting transformed. As an artist herself, Wysong said the exhibit has encouraged her to experiment with her own work.

“I think it’s neat to see someone stretching and a lot of different media. He’s been experimenting and, you know, I love that. We all kind of get in a little rut, and it’s inspiring for me to want to maybe try some different things that I haven’t done,” she said.

“Form from Chaos” will be on exhibit until November 30 at the Kokomo Art Center in Highland Park. The Kokomo Art Association is a non-profit organization that is run by volunteers like Wysong, and features local artists throughout the year. For more information, visit their website at kaaonline.org