INDIANAPOLIS — A repeat drunk driver is expected to be released from prison one year into his three-year prison sentence, due in part to a new state program that allows offenders to get time cuts from their sentences.
As WRTV Investigates reported in July 2025, a Hendricks County judge sentenced Brian Patten of Indianapolis to 3 years in the Indiana Department of Correction, followed by 1 year of work release.
“The defendant has a vast/extensive criminal history, and he is a danger to others,” read the sentencing order from Judge Dan Zielinski.
WRTV Investigates found Brian Patten of Indianapolis has 10 drunk driving convictions dating back to 1995, including cases in Ohio, California and Oregon, plus four convictions in Marion County, Indiana.
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His driving record shows the Indiana BMV has suspended his license 19 times, according to the state.
Patten’s projected release date from Edinburgh Correctional Facility is now listed as August 9, 2026.
Patten pleaded guilty to Operating a Vehicle as a Habitual Traffic Violator, a Level 6 felony.
WRTV Investigates has learned one reason Patten will be released early is because of a new state program called Case Plan Credit Time.
CPCT took effect in 2022 and allows individual offenders to follow a case plan and earn credits based on progress toward their unique goals.
Prior to 2022, offenders earned credits for specific programs.
But WRTV Investigates has learned offenders can also get up to a two years cut on top of that through a state program CPCT.
According to the Indiana Department of Correction, Patten received 166 days of Case Plan Credit Time.
However, what Patten did to earn those credits is “privileged and protected,” according to IDOC.
WRTV contacted Patten’s attorney, Kellie Mears of Brian J Johnson Law LLC.
“His release date was determined by the Department of Correction,” said Mears in an email to WRTV. “The judge did not modify his prison sentence.”
An amended sentence was entered into the court record on May 7, 2026, which allows Patten to serve 1-year on home detention following his release from prison.
Attorney Brian Johnson also emphasized the court did not reduce or shorten his sentence, however the court allowed Patten to do one-year of home detention instead of work release.
Under Good Time Credit, Level 1 to Level 5 (more serious) felons must serve 75% of their sentence if they have good behavior.
Patten was convicted of a Level 6 felony.
“For misdemeanors up to Level 6 felonies, a person receives 1 day credit for every day of their sentence that they serve, and this includes home detention and work release sentences,” said Johnson in an email to WRTV.
WRTV Investigates contacted the Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office several times, but we have not heard back.
The most recent conviction for Operating a Vehicle as a Habitual Traffic Violator stems from a February 2, 2024, incident.
A Plainfield Police officer was on routine patrol in the area of East Main Street and Plainfield Commons Drive when he observed a Kia Optima traveling south on Plainfield Commons Drive.
When the officer ran the license plate, he found the vehicle belonged to Brian Patten, a habitual traffic violator.
Patten was arrested and transported to the Hendricks County Jail, and his vehicle was towed, court records show.
A prosecutor can file for a habitual offender count when a person has two or more prior felony convictions, which can add three to six years to a sentence for a level 5 or 6 felony.
A Hendricks County deputy prosecutor argued Patten has violated home detention in the past and said Patten is a “danger to himself and the community.”
The judge agreed and pointed to Patten’s prior record before handing down the 3-year prison sentence.
He had no response to WRTV Investigates following the hearing.
Patten’s driver’s license is currently suspended until at least 2030.
“This behavior can’t be allowed,” said Denise Niblick, a program manager and advocate for Mothers Against Drunk Driving Indiana. “It’s just a matter of time until there is a victim in these cases. Until society realizes this behavior has to change, we have to say enough is enough when it comes to alcohol being synonymous with driving.”
Niblick said the criminal justice system considers drunk driving a nonviolent crime.
“It’s kind of looked at as a behavior issue,” said Niblick. “Typically, the judgment is taking a class, maybe probation, it's a bit of a slap on the wrist."
WRTV Investigates shared Patten’s driving history with MADD.
“You know he’s been told this is illegal, this is dangerous to yourself, to anyone in your path, it’s dangerous, and yet you continue to do that,” said Niblick. “To me, that is a selfish behavior.”
Niblick also said while drunk drivers who hurt or kill people can face stiffer penalties, that’s often not the case for repeat drunk drivers who don’t hurt anyone.
Niblick takes the issue to heart. Her sister was killed by a drunk driver in Hendricks County back in 2016.
“I would not wish the despair I have felt by losing my sister on my worst enemy,” said Niblick. “What every victim truly wants is for no one to ever feel this way again.”
MADD also points out that drunk driving can have financial impacts, including property damage and taxpayer money to arrest and prosecute criminal cases.
“We should want our money to go to other things rather than people who continuously decide to act in this way,” said Niblick.
