Officer shot in Waterloo returns home

WATERLOO, Ind. (AP) -- A northeastern Indiana police officer who was shot in the face two weeks ago has returned home from a hospital and the town's marshal said he is recovering well.

Waterloo Deputy Marshal Stephen Brady underwent surgery to repair his jaw and mouth after the Dec. 15 shooting that police say happened while he responding to a call about a couple whose car was in a ditch.

Brady, 47, returned home Tuesday night and is walking and writing, but isn't talking much because he's still using a trachea tube and breathing apparatus, Town Marshal Jay Oberholtzer said.

"I think he's doing tremendous for what he's been through," Oberholtzer told The Star of Auburn ( http://bit.ly/sVUXN4 ). "He's pretty strong-willed, and I think he's going to come through this whole thing better than I would have imagined possible."

Police haven't released details about the circumstances of Brady's shooting, but about three hours after the 3 a.m. attack a nearby resident told police that two people were hiding underneath his home's deck. Police said 41-year-old Ralph Hardiek pointed a gun at responding officers who fatally shot him and seriously wounded 33-year-old Julie King.

No charges have been filed against King because she remains hospitalized, state police Sgt. Ron Galaviz said.

A week before the shootings, Hardiek had failed to appear for a Noble County court hearing, where he was expected to be sentenced to 12 years in prison on methamphetamine charges.

Investigators found a handgun, two rifles and ammunition in the abandoned car that was registered to King, according to DeKalb County court documents.
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Information from: The (Auburn, Ind.) Star, http://www.dekalbstar.com