Ex-Henry County man charged with failing to inform partner of HIV status
ANDERSON, Ind. — A former Henry County resident faces a felony charge over allegations he failed to inform a sex partner he had tested positive for HIV.
Kenneth Richard Griffith, 37, more recently of Anderson, is charged in Madison Circuit Court 5 with being a "dangerous communicable disease carrier," a Level 6 felony carrying up to 30 months in prison.
The charge was filed in August 2020, but he was not arrested until June 25. He has since been released from the Madison County jail.
In March 2020, a local woman told Anderson police she had repeatedly engaged in unprotected sex with Griffith. She later learned he had tested positive — in 2016 — for HIV. That virus that can weaken a victim's ability to fight infections and without treatment can lead to AIDS.
More: Appeals court upholds New Castle woman's 65-year murder sentence for killing her mother
Indiana Department of Health records indicated Griffith in 2016 had signed a form that required him to tell "sex and needle-sharing partners" of his "positive HIV " status.
An initial hearing in Griffith's case was conducted on June 27, the day he was released from jail.
According to state Department of Correction records, Griffith — formerly of Middletown — has been incarcerated for burglary convictions in Delaware and Henry counties.
He was most recently released from custody in March 2020, a DOC website indicated.
STAY INFORMED AND SUPPORT LOCAL JOURNALISM: Subscribe today using the link at the top of this page.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: Former Middletown resident charged over failure to report HIV status
