Man charged with shooting La Porte County officer inside hospital pleads not guilty

Added: 2026-05-31

[00:00:00]We've been telling you about breaking news out of LaPorte, Indiana.

[00:00:03]>> That's right. Sayyid is live at the courthouse there uh where the suspect accused of shooting a deputy last Friday just entered a plea. Sayyid.

[00:00:12]>> Yeah, guys. So, we just got out of court. That suspect, 22-year-old Sherod Grafton of Chicago, appeared in court today over Zoom where he pleaded not guilty. Um I will say he looked pretty guarded in that uh hearing today with his arms crossed. He's being held on a $100,000 cash bond. And he did seem to have some concerns about this. He asked the judge for uh you know, a lower amount. There will be a bond investigation conducted. They're going to revisit that conversation here again in about 2 weeks. This all happened last Friday at around 6:30 in the morning.

[00:00:39]LaPorte County Deputy John Samuelson was on his way to a training session when he came across someone who he thought was a stranded driver on the side of the road, which we now know was Sherod Grafton. Uh he was, you know, asking the deputy for a ride to Franciscan Health Hospital in Michigan City. Deputy Samuelson, who's been on the force for 12 years, decided to take him there not knowing uh that he was reportedly in the process of fleeing an armed carjacking in Chicago where he allegedly stole that very car from his own mom at gunpoint. We know surveillance video has showed the moments of Samuelson and Grafton walking into the emergency room waiting area together just before 7:00 that morning.

[00:01:14]Uh but not long after, you know, police alerted dispatch about that stolen car warning officers to be on the lookout.

[00:01:20]Uh Samuelson went back inside into the ER to arrest Grafton, and that's kind of when everything broke out. According to court documents, Grafton resisted, then pulled out a handgun, and shot Samuelson three times. You know, we kind of detailed these court documents for you earlier in the morning, but if you missed it, these are pretty gruesome details cuz it shows, you know, a heroic act by Samuelson, but also a severe medical diagnosis, too. Um according to court documents, an ER nurse walked into the waiting room area in the middle of that struggle between Samuelson and Grafton, and then Grafton allegedly pointed the gun directly at that nurse.

[00:01:52]That nurse told investigators Deputy Samuelson, while he was already fighting for his life, he managed to force Grafton's gun uh away from the nurse.

[00:02:01]Um so he's, you know, has been telling investigators that deputy saved his life. Moments later, Grafton allegedly pressed that gun against Samuelson's neck and fired. As I mentioned, we know Samuelson was shot three times. Um and of course, we've heard from surgeons at the hospital that he's recovering at right now, who says there was a lot of damage that was done to that T1 vertebrae, which by the way is really important because any damage there can cut off communication between the brain and everything from the chest down, which can cause paralysis. That is what exactly what surgeons are saying right now, is that Samuelson is paralyzed from chest down. Uh guys, we do know that uh there's going to be some efforts coming um you know, happening here in just a few hours at 1:00 today. A lot of Deputy Samuelson's coworkers will be coming together out here at the courthouse to sell wristbands for $5. All of those proceeds going to him and his wife, Quinn, as they, you know, navigate this really difficult process.

[00:02:51]>> Well, they have a long road ahead, so I'm sure they'll appreciate any help that comes along the way. Really just goes to show there is no routine stop.

[00:02:59]You know, uh he went to help somebody in all of this.

[00:03:02]>> I know. Thank you so much, say. Thank you for following this story and for giving us those details as hard as they may be. And right to your point, Anita, um Sergeant Glenn Fifield with with Indiana State Police said after this all unfolded, you never know what you're walking up to. And that's the most frightening thing, you know, is the is the mystery.