WASHINGTON COUNTY — A Bedford woman faces a felony charge after state police revealed she allegedly forged a doctor’s note regarding a child’s hospitalization to excuse missed probation appointments.
Taylor N. Johnson, 30, was taken into custody on Thursday following an investigation by the Indiana State Police.
The investigation began on Sept. 15, when officials with the Washington County Probation Department reached out to ISP Detective Travis Baker regarding suspicious documentation Johnson had submitted to her probation officer. According to investigators, Johnson provided a letter purportedly written by a physician, claiming her daughter was hospitalized. Johnson used the alleged medical emergency as an excuse for failing to attend required probation meetings.
Upon reviewing the note, Detective Baker conducted a follow-up inquiry and discovered that the physician named in the letter had no affiliation with Riley Children’s Hospital. Further checks confirmed that the child had not been admitted or treated at the facility as claimed.
Establishing probable cause that the document was fraudulent, Detective Baker forwarded his findings to the Washington County Prosecutor’s Office. On Sept. 17, a Washington County court issued a Level 6 felony warrant for Johnson on one count of forgery.
State troopers executed the arrest warrant later that day. Johnson was also served with a separate Washington County warrant for violating her probation and a petition to revoke her suspended sentence.
Court records show the underlying probation case stems from prior convictions, including a Level 6 felony theft charge and a Class A misdemeanor for driving while suspended with a prior conviction.
Johnson was transported to the Washington County Jail, where she remains incarcerated.
Those arrested are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
