After two decades as Wayne County prosecutor, Mike Shipman will not run for reelection during next year’s election.
Shipman announced his decision May 29 by email, saying he had always planned to leave prosecution once he reached 30 years of public service. His term expires Dec. 31, 2026.
In 2005, Shipman was appointed prosecutor replacing David Kolger, who was elected Circuit Court judge. He ran uncontested and won elections for five subsequent terms. Shipman said he is the longest-serving prosecutor in Wayne County history.
Shipman, who received his law degree from Indiana University in Indianapolis, was admitted to the Indiana bar Nov. 4, 1996, and served as a deputy prosecutor in Benton County before coming to Wayne County. He was a deputy prosecutor and chief deputy prosecutor before his appointment as prosecutor.
The announcement Shipman will not run provides possible successors almost a year to declare their intention and to campaign before the 2026 primary election.
Shipman currently faces a lawsuit filed by Richmond Police Department Major Adam Blanton over Shipman placing Blanton on a local Brady-Giglio list of officers whose court testimony could be impeached by defendants. Shipman has requested dismissal of the lawsuit, and Special Judge Bob Witham has scheduled a hearing at 10:45 a.m. June 12 in Henry County Circuit Court 1.
A version of this article appeared in the June 4 2025 print edition of the Western Wayne News.