Officer suspended after IMS incident

EDINBURGH, Ind. (WISH) - An Edinburgh police officer accused of attacking officers at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway last month has been put on unpaid leave as a criminal investigation continues.

24-Hour News 8 news partner the Daily Journal reports the Edinburgh Town Council, which serves as town’s police merit commission, voted to place Officer Christopher McAllister, 44, on unpaid leave until the case is resolved in Marion County.

Because the town does not have a policy regarding what to do when an officer is charged with a crime, the newspaper said, Police Chief Pat Pankey allowed him to continue working and deferred the decision on what should be done to the Town Council.

Police said McAllister and his wife were creating a disturbance May 26 at IMS the day before the Indianapolis 500. When officers confronted them, McAllister attacked officers. He faces charges of battery, resisting law enforcement and public intoxication.

His wife, Shawntel, also resisted officers and even tried to jump on one of them. She was charged with resisting law enforcement and public intoxication.

Dustin Huddleston, the town’s attorney, told the newspaper the council would reconsider McAllister’s status once the criminal case was resolved.