A Champaign County Municipal Court judge has dismissed charges against St. Paris Police Chief Eric Smith, who was arrested at the Champaign County Fair in August.
The judge ruled on Monday that the case is “dismissed without prejudice to future action,” allowing for the possibility of future charges.
On August 4th, deputies at the fairgrounds reported that Smith was openly carrying a firearm while off-duty, along with his police badge.
According to a spokesperson for the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office, deputies located Smith and instructed him to either return his firearm to his vehicle or leave the fair.
Smith reportedly refused to comply, insisting that he would continue carrying his firearm at the event.
Subsequently, Smith was arrested and trespassed from the fairgrounds for the remainder of the event.
He faced charges of obstructing official business and criminal trespassing, to which he pleaded not guilty.
In response to the incident, St. Paris Mayor Susan Price confirmed that Chief Smith had been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation.
As of now, it remains unclear whether Smith is still on leave or what the next steps in the investigation will be.