An inmate was sentenced to 50 years for beating another prisoner to death at the Plainfield Correctional Facility in what prosecutors described as a “brutal assault.”
The Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office stated that Robert Allen Miller was sentenced to 50 years in the Indiana Department of Correction following a jury trial in which he was found guilty of the following:
- Robbery Resulting in Serious Bodily Injury (Level 2 Felony)
- Aggravated Battery (Level 3 Felony)
When deciding on the case, the jury also considered the habitual offender enhancement. During the hearing, jurors were shown evidence indicating Miller targeted Jeffrey Clouser in July 2024, whom the HCPO described as a “medically vulnerable inmate who relied on assistance from others due to significant health issues. ” Clouser was sixty years old.
Surveillance footage and witness testimony confirmed that Miller entered Clouser’s cell and remained there for several minutes. As he eventually emerged from the cell, HCPO reported that he had a “visibly swollen hand” as he left. He was also seen lugging Clouser’s personal items.
Staff later discovered Clouser “severely beaten” and “covered in blood.” During the sentence hearing, the judge weighed Miller’s prior criminal history, the fact that he committed this assault while already in prison, and his “complete lack of remorse.”
Despite the coroner’s determination that his death was homicide, Miller was not charged with murder. FOX59/CBS4 previously interviewed Clouser’s family attorney, Harvey Lancaster, who opposed the decision.
“They have plenty of evidence. “They have enough evidence to charge,” Lancaster stated at the time. “We handle criminal cases in our office too, and I’ve seen people charged with things on a lot less than what they have here.”
Hendricks County Prosecutor Loren Delp has not explained why his agency did not bring a murder charge in the case, citing prosecutorial ethics.
“This punishment accurately reflects what justice demanded.” Robert Miller preyed on a vulnerable victim, inflicted extraordinary violence, and showed no remorse for his actions,” Delp stated. “The jury held him accountable, and the court recognized the gravity of the offense by imposing the maximum penalty. Whether violence occurs on our streets or behind prison walls, my office will continue to advocate for victims and ensure that those who commit such crimes receive the full weight of the law.”
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