Former Camp HOPE Director Sentenced For OWI, Possession

By Mike Perleberg Daniel E. Backus. Photo by Dearborn County Sheriff’s Dept. (Lawrenceburg, Ind.) - Jail time has been ordered for the man who once attempted to start a drug rehabilitation facility in Dearborn County. Daniel E. Backus was the leader of a group attempting to open a rehab program called Camp HOPE at the former Camp Chazon Youth Camp on State Road 62 near Dillsboro earlier this year. Backus said he would have been the rehab program’s director. Neighbors of the facility and county officials, however, expressed a variety of concerns with a large drug rehab facility being established nearby. Plans for the rehabilitation center encountered another problem in May. Backus, 44, was pulled over when police allegedly caught him speeding at more than 100 MPH on U.S. 50 in Greendale. Backus was subsequently charged with OWI (class A misdemeanor), Possession of a Legend Drug or Precursor (level 6 felony), Reckless Driving (class B misdemeanor), Operator Never Licensed (class C misdemeanor), and Operating with a BAC Between .08 and .14 (class C misdemeanor). On September 17 in Dearborn Superior Court II, the 44-year-old pleaded guilty to the OWI and drug possession charges. Judge Sally McLaughlin sentenced Backus to a year and a half in jail. Backus was afforded credit for 236 good time days served in jail since his arrest on May 22. The remaining members of the Camp HOPE effort disbanded after Backus’ arrest. Board members said funds raised for the rehabilitation center’s establishment would be donated to a local charity. RELATED STORIES: Camp H.O.P.E. Quitting Plans For Drug Rehab Center New Details In Planned Drug Rehab Leader’s Arrest; Camp HOPE Board Responds Man Who Spearheaded Drug Rehab Effort Arrested Drug Rehab Center Group, Dillsboro Camp Owners Part Ways Neighbors Not Happy With Planned Drug Rehab Center; County Officials Say Not So Fast Former Youth Camp Could Become SEI’s Biggest Drug Rehab Center