A Brown County jury took less than two hours to convict a Jackson County man on felony counts of aggravated battery and battery with a deadly weapon.

Jeffrey Tracy, 57, of Brownstown, was initially charged September 2019 with aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony, and three counts of battery by means of a deadly weapon, Level 5 felonies.

Tracy was found guilty on Sept. 17 of aggravated battery and two counts of battery with a deadly weapon.

In August 2019 witnesses reported seeing Tracy brutally beating a woman with an ax handle. Witnesses had called 911 dispatch to report a large man brandishing a club and beating a woman at the Olde Time Flea Market in Gnaw Bone.

One witness said she thought the man might kill the woman.

Police responded to the scene and found the victim bleeding from a severe laceration from her left hand. She claimed that Tracy ordered her to the ground, swung the ax handle at another person’s head and that person ran from the scene.

Tracy then began beating the victim on the ground with the ax handle. Tracy was also charged with hitting another individual, but the jury acquitted him of that count, according to a press release from Prosecutor Ted Adams.

At the scene, Brown County Sheriff’s Deputy Josh Stargell located and seized the ax-handle, which was covered in blood, according to the press release.

The incident was witnessed by two independent eye witnesses and had occurred during the day.

“It was a brutal beating in broad daylight in downtown Gnaw Bone,” Adams said.

“Listening to the eyewitnesses and the victims, it had to be traumatizing.”

The victim eventually received medical services from Schneck Hospital in Seymour, Indiana. She required stitches to close the wound on her hand. Her hand was placed in a splint and she lost function of her hand for approximately six weeks.

During the trial, she told the jury that she still does not have full function of her injured hand.

“Jeff Tracy thought it was okay to beat a woman with an ax handle in broad daylight,” Deputy Prosecutor Rob Seet said.

“It took a Brown County jury lunch time to tell him that he was wrong.”

Tracy decided to represent himself at the last moment and waived counsel, according to the prosecutor’s office. Public Defender Dan Reuter was then assigned to “stand by counsel” to advise Tracy as needed, which was something neither Adams or Seet had witnessed in their careers.

“I probably objected more in this one jury trial than quite possibly all of my other 40-some jury trials combined,” Adams said of the trial.

Tracy testified in his own defense. He testified he was a “big ole teddy bear” and had acted that day in self-defense, according to the press release.

He said the victim attempted to throw gravel and dust at his eyes. He said that he “feared for his life,” so he clubbed her hand, according to the release.

He then commanded her to stay down and beat her with the ax handle if she attempted to get up. His testimony later changed to him claiming he only struck the victim after she stood up and faced him, according to the press release.

His testimony was not corroborated by the injuries on the victim that were inflicted while she was not facing Tracy.

Adams questioned how Tracy, who is over 6 feet tall and weighs 255 pounds, was in fear of his life by the victim, who is 5 feet tall, throwing gravel at him.

“So much so that he employed potentially deadly force with a deadly weapon to meet that threat, and also testified that he repeatedly beat her while she was down,” Adams said.

“That’s pretty much the definition of unreasonable, excessive force. … In what century and what country would this be appropriate? Not in Gnaw Bone. Not in Brown County. Not in Indiana.”

Tracy faces serving a total of 28 years in prison with an advisory sentence of 15 years.

Adams stated in the press release that he would be seeking prison time, which would be on par with “beating a woman with an ax handle in broad daylight.”

Sentencing has been set for Oct. 15 at 2 p.m.

In 2019, Tracy and his wife, Patricia Robbins Tracy, had been buying the Olde Time Flea Market property on contract. Around the same time of the ax incident, Judge Mary Wertz ruled that Patricia Tracy was in default of the contract after not paying rent for five months; and that land owner Charlie Placke could foreclose. The Tracys also were barred from the property.