Bedford man faces felony gun charge after police call at Wilson Park

A Bedford man is facing a Level 5 felony after a disturbance call at Wilson Park led officers to a handgun he wasn't legally allowed to carry, according to a probable cause affidavit from the Lawrence County Prosecutor's Office.

Dustin M. Turpin, 43, was arrested Sunday, Sept. 27, on a preliminary charge of unlawful carrying of a handgun with a prior conviction.

The call

Just before 2:30 p.m., someone called dispatch to report two men and a woman in a maroon SUV yelling at children near the playground at Wilson Park on Park Avenue. The caller told dispatchers they were worried the people in the vehicle might be high.

Bedford Police Officer Michael Bell found the SUV, a red Hyundai Tucson, parked right beside the playground while several kids were playing. When he walked up to the passenger side, he reported smelling marijuana.

Turpin was behind the wheel, with Gavin Arney in the front passenger seat and a woman in the back. Turpin told officers the only children he'd been talking to were his daughter and Arney's daughter.

The search

When questioned about the marijuana smell, Turpin admitted he had tossed a joint out the window. He picked it back up and handed it over, and officers had all three get out of the car for a search.

While being walked to a patrol car, Turpin told officers he was armed. A pat-down turned up a .40-caliber Glock 27 in a holster on his waistband. Asked whether he could legally carry it, he reportedly answered, "As far as I know, I am."

Officers also found a small baggie of a crystal-like substance on the ground near Arney's feet. It field-tested positive for methamphetamine, and Arney was arrested on the spot.

Turpin and the woman were released at the park, and Turpin's gun was given back to him.

The records check

After leaving the park, Officer Bell ran Turpin's criminal history. It showed two prior convictions in Lawrence County for carrying a handgun without a license, one in May 2018 and another in March 2019. In Indiana, a prior handgun conviction bumps the charge up to a Level 5 felony.

Officer Brooking then went to Turpin's home on Sandpit Road, where Turpin was handcuffed and taken to the Lawrence County Jail. Another person at the home turned the Glock over to police, and it was logged into evidence.

All charges are preliminary. Everyone is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.