RENSSELAER, Ind. — In a recent development in Indiana, a sheriff’s deputy has been deemed legally justified in the fatal shooting of a man during a traffic stop. The incident involved a man who was recently pardoned by former President Donald Trump for a misdemeanor linked to the 2021 Capitol riot.
The office of the Clinton County prosecutor announced that the Jasper County deputy acted in self-defense when Matthew Huttle was killed on January 26. The deputy had initially pulled over Huttle, a 42-year-old resident of Hobart, for exceeding the speed limit—driving 70 mph in a 55 mph zone. During the stop, when Huttle was informed of his arrest for being a habitual traffic violator, he ran back to his vehicle’s driver’s seat. Prosecutors noted that he reached “in a manner consistent with retrieving a weapon.”
A confrontation ensued between Huttle and the deputy. The prosecutor’s report reveals that the deputy fired multiple shots after witnessing Huttle lift a firearm and declare, “I’m shooting myself.” Inside Huttle’s vehicle, investigators later discovered a loaded 9mm handgun and additional rounds of ammunition. Dash camera footage corroborated that Huttle was seen lifting “an object” inside the vehicle during the encounter.
Efforts to contact an attorney who has been defending Huttle in ongoing motor vehicle cases in Lake County were made, albeit without immediate success.
Back in 2023, Huttle faced a sentence of six months after he pleaded guilty to charges of entering a restricted government building, the U.S. Capitol, during the events of January 6, 2021. At the time, he accompanied his uncle to Washington, D.C., to partake in a rally supporting the former president. During the breach, Huttle was inside the Capitol for a brief 16 minutes, capturing video footage on his device.
Huttle’s involvement in the Capitol riot was characterized by his defense attorney, Andrew Hemmer, as bearing no deeply rooted political motivations. In a legal document concerning the riot charges, Hemmer detailed that Huttle had merely intended to witness a historic moment, having recently been released from jail for a different driving-related offense.
