IBERIA, OH (MARION COUNTY NOW)—Residents of a home in Iberia were left traumatized, and one man was seriously injured after deputies from the Morrow County Sheriff’s Department unlawfully entered their residence late Saturday night into early Sunday morning.
The incident occurred at a home on Bucyrus Street in Iberia, where Daniel Cross and Brandy Kirk reside with their children, aged 11, 10, 7, and 18 months.
The ordeal allegedly began when Morrow County Sheriff’s Deputies knocked on the family’s door around 11:50 p.m. on Saturday night, claiming to be conducting a wellness check based on a 911 call reporting a ten-year-old in danger. Brandy Kirk explained that no such call had been made and that the children and her partner were sleeping. However, deputies disregarded her explanation, allegedly pushed past Kirk, and entered the home.
Once inside, the commotion awakened Cross and the children. According to reports, deputies allegedly lined them up on the sofa and seized all telephones in the house. Despite Cross’s repeated requests for the deputies to leave and obtain a warrant for any further search, they proceeded without permission. Finally, an alleged confrontation ensued between Daniel Cross and Deputy Joshua Voorhees, during which Cross was allegedly assaulted, sustaining injuries that required emergency back surgery on Monday. According to Deb Cross, Voorhees slammed her son over a coffee table, put a gun in his side, kneed him in the back, and stomped on his feet.
The incident finally came to an end around 3 a.m. when deputies were informed by their supervisor that they had gone to the wrong address. Cross was subsequently taken to Marion General Hospital for treatment on Sunday, which resulted in back surgery to remove crushed bone and repair crushed discs in his back.
Marion County Now reached out to Sheriff John Hinton for comment and public records requests but received no response. Any updates will be published upon receiving it. Attorney J.C Ratliff has formally requested the preservation of evidence related to the incident. Cross is expected to be released from the hospital on Tuesday but will be unable to return to work in the near future. Financial stress is added to his physical condition as he is the sole breadwinner in the household.
Debra Cross, Daniel’s mother, stated that her grandchildren have been traumatized by the events and are currently staying with her and her husband, expressing reluctance to return to their home.
Marion County Now will continue to follow this breaking news story.