A Gary man got time served Tuesday in a plea deal for threatening a Regional Health Systems employee in East Chicago over the phone on Feb. 14, then later showing up at the facility with guns in his car.
Terrance Lindsey-Bynum, 33, pleaded guilty Nov. 6 to intimidation, a Level 5 felony. The plea deal called for a one-year sentence, which was satisfied by time already spent behind bars.
He was also originally charged Feb. 16 with attempted murder – despite no evidence he physically hurt anyone.
The scope of what Lindsey-Bynum actually did shifted over time and Lake County prosecutors dropped the attempted murder charge on Oct. 29 – a week before the plea deal was filed.
Deputy Prosecutor Keith Anderson acknowledged during Lindsey-Bynum’s sentencing that he “never actually got into the facility” and “no one was hurt.”
Defense lawyer Sonya Scott-Dix said Lindsey-Bynum, then a Regional patient, got into an argument with the employee when he called “trying to find housing,” she said. He felt the woman was “disrespectful” to him.
The furthest he took it was threatening to “slap her,” the lawyer said.
The original charging affidavit stated the employee told East Chicago police that Lindsey-Bynum, a Regional patient, called her in the morning on Feb. 14, upset after he got evicted for “not following” Regional’s “guidelines.”
He grew more angry as they talked.
“The Demon is coming out, I’m on my way. I’m going to blow that…up,” he said.
The woman said he had threatened other Regional facilities. She called 911.
Later on, Lindsey-Bynum showed up at 12:28 p.m. wearing all black and a black ski mask. Police were already there. They asked him to take off the mask.
“Good, you’re here. Now we can talk to them together,” Lindsey-Bynum told officers.
After his arrest, East Chicago police found a loaded AR-style rifle, loaded handgun, and additional ammunition in his car, according to the charging affidavit.
Prosecutors can “allege anything,” Scott-Dix said after the hearing. They were “gracious” to drop the attempted murder charge when it was clear they couldn’t prove it, she said.
When asked if Lindsey-Bynum had weapons in his car at the facility, she said she didn’t want to get into the case’s details.
mcolias@post-tribune.com
Originally Published:
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