UPDATE (3/13/2025): Logansport, Indiana, police officer Cody Scott and his wife Kylie both appeared in a Cass County courtroom Thursday, where they both entered a preliminary not guilty plea. They are due back in court on May 8 for a pre-trial conference. A final pre-trial hearing is scheduled for July 17, and a jury trial is set for 9 a.m. on Sept. 22.

LOGANSPORT, Ind. – In a unanimous vote Wednesday, the Logansport Board of Public Works and Safety Committee voted to place Logansport Police Officer Cody Scott on unpaid administrative leave.

Court records show Scott is charged with two counts of neglect of a dependent. Both are Level 6 felonies.

Scott had been placed on paid administrative leave since the incident happened in January.

“Officer Scott was notified about the matter at his residence, and since the,n he has turned himself in, and his wife, I believe, has turned herself in as well. They have both bonded out and are awaiting a trial date,” said Logansport Police Chief Travis Yike at the meeting.

This all stems from when police said a child in Scott’s care was forced to stand outside in frigid temperatures with a sign that read, “I want to stab and kill my brother, I even take an antipsychotic. If you need to give pity, then give it to the victims.”

Scott’s wife, Kylie Scott, is also charged with two counts of neglect of a dependent.

affiliate WXIN reached out multiple times to the Cass County court system and to Special Prosecutor Nicholas McLeland to get a probable cause affidavit. The documents were unsealed Wednesday night.

The probable cause affidavit

The probable cause affidavit, which has several redactions, indicated the Scotts had the girl hold signs as punishment in the past. On one occasion, she held a sign that said, “I pee on everything and cover it up like a cat.” On another occasion, she was forced to carry a sign around Walmart that said, “I lie to hurt other people.”

Of the Jan. 2025 incident that led to charges against the Scotts, the probable cause affidavit indicated the temperature was 18 degrees Fahrenheit with a wind speed of 17 mph. Multiple people had contacted dispatchers to express concerns about the girl holding the sign in the cold.

According to the affidavit, one person called 911, and at least two other vehicles stopped to speak with law enforcement after seeing the girl holding the sign out in the cold. All were concerned about the appropriateness of the punishment, given the frigid conditions.

During an interaction caught on body camera footage, a passerby asked Scott why the girl was standing out in the cold.

“Well, sir, aside from me cruelly beating her physically. I’ve not done any other punishment that’s worked for her,” Scott said, according to a transcription of the audio from the affidavit. “She’s threatened to kill my family, she wants to embarrass us, she wants to urinate on herself and destroy things in the house. I have a DCS caseworker involved, she’s been in therapy for three years, she also has the wrap around program at school. She goes in every 30 minutes to warm back up, she’s bundled up very warm and then she’ll come back out.”

During an interview with police, Scott’s wife said the punishment stemmed from something that happened at church. She’d told the girl she could put on lip gloss, but the little girl forgot and pouted about it at Sunday school.

Scott’s wife indicated the girl was acting out to get attention and said she often did that. The punishment for her behavior was to stand outside in the cold, holding the sign.

Scott said the girl would stand outside for 30 minutes, come back inside to warm up for about 10 minutes, and go back out for another 30 minutes of punishment. He told investigators she was bundled up and wearing the same clothes she’d wear if she went to play outside in the snow.

The Scotts told investigators that other forms of punishment were ineffective. They said the girl suffers from mental disorders and has broken her toys and urinated on herself in order to get attention. The girl, they said, also threatened to hurt her little brother by cutting him or shooting him.

When asked about the girl urinating on herself, Mrs. Scott said it happened approximately five times, while Scott estimated it was “approximately 50 times,” according to court documents.

The couple said they’d sought guidance on dealing with the girl’s behavioral problems.

During an interview at a child advocacy center, the girl said she had been grounded before for bad behavior and had stayed in her room. When she needed to use the bathroom, she was told to wait. She also said her brother doesn’t receive similar punishments.

The Indiana State Police investigator who wrote the probable cause affidavit suspected that forcing the girl to wait was what caused her to urinate on herself.

The investigator also said there were indications the Scotts had prepared the girl for her interview at the child advocacy center by going over potential questions she might be asked and how she should respond.

The investigator didn’t believe the punishment fit the crime and asked the prosecutor’s office to review the case for possible charges.

“The affiant finds this form of discipline to be disproportionate to the offense and unnecessarily degrading,” the investigator wrote in the affidavit.

Reaction and next steps

Rebecca Gibbs, who reported the incident to police back in January, shared her thoughts on the punishment.

“I am a mother myself. I felt it was sickening – disgust,” said Gibbs. “That’s what it was that somebody could do that to a child and to know that that’s a police officer who did that to a child, that’s even worse. It was horrible. I wouldn’t let my dog sit outside for an hour, let alone my child.”

Officials with the Logansport Board of Public Works and Safety Committee said that once the criminal investigation is complete, the board will conduct an internal investigation about Scott’s future employment.

 Both Scott and his wife are due in court Thursday for their initial hearing at 1 p.m.