Legal Question in Employment Law in Indiana

Re: Termination for Cause

The law in the state of Indiana is "at will," which means an employer can fire an employee for good reason, bad reason or no reason (absent a union). Can't fire an employee for an illegal reason (typically, race, religion, sex, age, disability, couple other reasons).

In this instance, you have a supervisor, an at will employee, who was arrested for a crime. You can fire them for that arrest. It may later be deemed to be a "bad reason" but that only means you'd have to pay unemployment compensation.

Where employers like yourself get hurt is when you spread the news of the reason for the discharge to persons not entitled to know. Or sometimes an employer may selectively tell an employee here and there and pretty soon, everyone knows. Later, the fired employee wins his/her case in criminal court and sues you for defamation (libel/slander). You're entitled to tell people who have a need to know. That's it.

But as to your right to fire this person, given the facts you've stated here, certainly you could fire the individual for merely getting arrested. The outcome of the trial is irrelevant.

I am presuming you have no contract of employment with the individual.