A 4th of July gathering in Lexington Township turned violent resulting in a rural Underwood man being charged with three felonies involving a knife.
Harold Matthew Kemp, 52, of the 100 block on the south side of County Line Road, Underwood, was charged by Scott County Prosecutor Chris Owens with aggravated battery posing a substantial risk of death, battery with a deadly weapon, and intimidation with a deadly weapon.
According to Scott County Sheriff’ Deputy Steven VanCleave, he was called to the 3800 block of E. Plymouth Road in Lexington Township on the report of a possible stabbing. Before deputies, Scottsburg and Austin Police officers arrived, the victim and suspects had left the scene.
Several of the juveniles at the gathering reported that Harold Kemp and his son Matthew Kemp showed up yelling, trying to fight them, according to the probable cause affidavit.
One of the juveniles showed the deputy a video showing two females fighting when a Jeffrey Cox and the younger Kemp tried to break up the fight then began fighting themselves.
According to the court document, the senior Kemp charged Cox and Cox punched him. Cox then tried running away with the Kemps giving chase. Cox was able to get in his vehicle while the Kemps punched him through an open vehicle window. The probable cause reported that Harold Matthew Kemp Sr. slipped and as he stood back up pulled a knife from his waist band and flipped it open then charged at the vehicle as Cox drove off.
When police went Kemp’s residence just over the Scott-Clark County line, he acknowledged that he had been at the Plymouth Road residence and after Cox punched him he did pulled a knife.
Police placed Kemp in handcuffs and obtained permission to search Kemp’s residence for the knife. While searching for the knife, police located an AR style shotgun with a drum magazine under Kemp’s bed.
According to the probable cause affidavit, Jeffrey Cox told authorities that they had permission to be at the residence for a holiday party when the Kemps showed up telling them to leave. Shortly thereafter the two female juveniles began fighting triggering the kerfuffle between the Kemps and Cox.
Harold M. Kemp was booked into Scott County Jail at 11:35 p.m. July 4. On Wednesday, July 8, the Scott County prosecutor filed a motion to seek habitual offender status for Kemp.
Scott Circuit Court Judge Jason Mount set Kemp’s full cash bond at $250,000.