Prosecution withdraws from plea agreement

In an unusual development, Wayne County’s prosecution team has withdrawn from a filed plea agreement for a man accused of stealing funds from a local cemetery foundation.

About a dozen spectators, including board members for Lutheran Cemetery Foundation of Pershing, Indiana, and residents whose families have plots there, gathered inside Wayne Superior Court 2 on Oct. 9. 

They expected to watch a change of plea and sentencing hearing for Dustin L. Taylor, 45, of Cambridge City, and some planned to speak about his alleged harm to the community.

Dustin Taylor was previously secretary and superintendent for the cemetery board and his wife, Trisha C. Taylor, 45, was its president.

According to a probable cause affidavit, Indiana State Police say the Taylors wrote checks worth more than $150,000 to themselves. 

The case has been in Wayne County’s courts for just over 18 months.  

Judge Gregory Horn found probable cause for Trisha Taylor to be arrested in March 2023, a few days before her husband. They both face the same Level 5 felony charge of theft of property worth more than $50,000.

After several rescheduled trial dates, Dustin Taylor was to face a jury on Oct. 7. However, his trial was canceled after he signed a plea agreement on Sept. 13.  

Those who gathered on Oct. 9 learned the prosecution had withdrawn from the plea agreement. Horn granted that request. 

Dustin Taylor is now scheduled for a pretrial conference on March 13, 2025, and a trial on April 28.  

Trisha Taylor’s pretrial conference is currently set for 9 a.m. Jan. 9, and her trial is scheduled for 9 a.m. Feb. 10.

A new board has taken over cemetery management and began seeking donations for maintenance after getting its nonprofit status reinstated. 

Plot owners have been encouraged to send copies of their burial rights certificates to P.O. Box 22, Pershing, IN 47370, to ensure board records are current. Those with questions about cemetery operations may call 765-914-8967.