Nashville Ex-Fire Chief Faces New Child Sex Crime Charges

**Story from FOX 59**

NASHVILLE, Ind. — A decade after she says she was groomed and sexually abused by a powerful local official, a 28-year-old Indiana woman has come forward, prompting a wave of new criminal charges against former Gregg Township Fire Chief Roger Kemp.

Kemp now faces multiple counts in Brown County, including:

Sexual misconduct with a minor

Vicarious sexual gratification

Multiple counts of child exploitation

These new charges follow an initial February charge in Bartholomew County for possession of child sex abuse material, which stemmed directly from evidence uncovered by the victim herself.

According to court documents, Arika Palmer was just 14 years old when she first met Kemp, who was then a married fire chief with children her age. Palmer says that Kemp exploited his position of authority within the community to silence her and conceal the abuse.

“Him being a fire chief, he always told me, ‘No one will ever believe you because I am in this position of power. I’m an important public official. You’re nobody,’” Palmer recalled.

Documents reveal Kemp engaged in sexual acts with Palmer multiple times before her 16th birthday. When she turned 16, Kemp hosted a party centered around a crude joke about statutory legal thresholds—a detail prosecutors say speaks directly to his awareness of his crimes.

“I think it shows his culpability,” said Brown County Prosecutor Ted Adams. “It demonstrates that, in my opinion, that’ll be valuable evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that he knew exactly what he was doing.”

In Indiana, the statute of limitations for most felonies expires after five years. However, state law contains specific “saving clauses” designed to protect victims of historical sexual abuse when new evidence comes to light.

Adams explained that law enforcement moved rapidly once Palmer provided investigators with USB flash drives she uncovered last year, which contained illicit imagery and videos of her as a minor.

“There’s a lot of subsections. The one I operated under was newly discovered items that were disclosed to law enforcement,” Adams said. “Once it was disclosed to us, the Indiana State Police acted upon it, and that would allow us to pursue the actions that took place in 2012. I don’t care what position they’re in,” Adams added. “We hold them responsible.”

For Palmer, the fight for accountability extends beyond her abuser to the institution that shielded him.

“I feel completely failed by, especially, the fire department, because that’s supposed to be a safe place that people can go for help,” Palmer said. “And not only is the chief in a relationship with an underage girl, but the people who know about it are also not saying anything to anyone.”

Palmer also expressed ongoing frustration with court-ordered custody arrangements, noting that Kemp is permitted visitation with the young daughter they share—supervised by his family members rather than an independent third party.

Kemp resigned immediately following his initial arrest in February. Rob Stecher, the new Chief of the Gregg Township Fire Department, confirmed in a public statement that the department has since undergone a complete organizational overhaul, adopting new leadership, bylaws, and strict vetting procedures.

“The alleged conduct reported publicly does not reflect the values, principles, or expectations of the Gregg Township Fire Department,” Stecher stated. “We do not condone any behavior that undermines the trust our community places in us.”

The department has also been rocked by separate accusations against another former official, Charles Heflin, who faces criminal charges for secretly recording women and children in the station bathroom and soliciting fire victims for sex.

With dual prosecutions now moving forward, Palmer emphasizes that her decision to speak out is about protecting future generations from systemic abuse.

“Kids can’t keep getting hurt. Public officials can’t keep thinking that it’s okay to do this and that they won’t get caught,” Palmer said. “Although I do feel like it’s been a hard road, justice is being served and we’re going to keep fighting for it.”

Kemp’s trial in Bartholomew County is scheduled for September 8, with his Brown County trial set to begin two weeks later on September 22.