Joshua Hinton Silvers, 46, pleaded guilty to felony theft on Sept. 17, 2026 and was sentenced the same day to six years of home detention for stealing from Rose City Funeral Home in New Castle, Indiana. Henry Circuit Court 2 Judge Kit Crane ordered 2,190 days of home detention under electronic monitoring. "You are going to prison in your house," Crane said, according to the New Castle Courier-Times.
The sentence carries $170,984.27 in restitution, payable over 54 months. The terms include a strict condition. If Silvers is even one day late on a payment, he is to be held without bond and serve the remaining balance of the sentence in prison.
By the Numbers
THE THEFT
Silvers was hired at Rose City Funeral Home, 2011 Broad St., on Dec. 29, 2021. He was paid $81,000 a year plus a company vehicle and family cell phones. He was also becoming a 20 percent owner of the business, the Courier-Times reported.
The thefts came to light about two weeks before police were called on Sept. 17, 2024. Owners Michael and Angie Staton found families carrying outstanding bills the families said they had already paid. Those families told the Statons they had paid Silvers directly. Records from Citizens State Bank confirmed the checks had been cashed.
Police estimated the loss at $172,717.66, with money missing since 2022 and at least 25 families affected. Fox59, citing charging documents, reported 128 deposits into Silvers' personal accounts. The same documents accused him of forging the funeral home founder's signature on his home mortgage and forging customer signatures. After being confronted, Silvers factory reset the company's computers, which police described as an apparent attempt to hide his actions. He was terminated on or about Aug. 30, 2024.
THIRTY-ONE COUNTS, THEN ONE
Silvers was arrested on a warrant on May 28, 2025. Prosecutors filed 31 counts of theft and forgery. The breakdown: three theft counts as Level 5 felonies, seven theft counts as Level 6 felonies, one theft count as a Class A misdemeanor, and 20 forgery counts as Level 6 felonies. Under the plea agreement filed Aug. 6, 2026, the remaining 30 counts were dismissed after he pleaded guilty to a single count of theft as a Level 5 felony, the most serious charge level filed against him.
WHAT THE MONEY WAS FOR
Michael Staton told the court the misappropriated funds were supposed to be set aside in trust for pre-arranged funeral services. Preneed money is what families pay ahead of a death so the funeral is covered when the time comes.
At least 10 pre-need files had to be transferred to other funeral homes. Staton said business has decreased by at least 50 percent, and the value of the business has fallen "by no less than $500,000, maybe more."
Indiana keeps a state fund for preneed losses. The Indiana State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service approved a claim from the Preneed Consumer Protection Fund at its Feb. 6, 2025 meeting: $1,595 with statutory interest, to Michael Staton. The board's minutes list the matter as "Rose City Funeral Home Macer Hall Marcum Chapel for Judith Stone," under Silvers' funeral director license number, FD21700052. Silvers had asked the board to surrender that license.
The board refused. It summarily suspended the license in June 2025, renewed the suspension in February 2026 after Silvers stopped responding to the administrative case, and revoked it on April 2, 2026, finding him guilty on all three administrative counts and fining him the maximum $1,000 per count. The licensing case ended five months before the criminal one.
Angie Staton told the court Silvers was "a thief, a liar and a cheater." Michael Staton said, "The financial loss is staggering." Crane asked Silvers from the bench, "Are you done hurting people in Henry County?"
WHAT COMES NEXT
Crane gave Silvers about one hour after sentencing to report to Henry County Community Corrections. He is permitted to live-stream church services. His wife may grocery shop. Silvers' attorney, Christopher Isom, asked that paying the restitution early allow a request to serve the remainder of the sentence on formal probation.
Rose City Funerals, LLC, the legal entity behind the funeral home, sued Silvers, his wife Charity Silvers, Lisa Black, and Shyann Vermillion in Henry Circuit Court 2 on November 13, 2024, case 33C02-2411-CT-000061. The court granted prejudgment attachment on February 27, 2026. Nothing has been filed in the case since March 4, 2026, and the civil case is still pending.
The state licensing board meets next on October 28, 2026. Silvers' license is already revoked, but the board approves preneed fund claims at its meetings, and any new claim touching Rose City would surface there.
IF YOU DID BUSINESS WITH ROSE CITY DURING THIS PERIOD
The thefts ran from 2022 through August 2024, when Silvers was fired. Here is what we know about where affected families stand, and what to do if you are one of them.
If your loved one's funeral was handled by Rose City between 2022 and 2024, the funeral home itself performed those services, and the contracts were honored. The money Silvers stole had already been paid in by families; Rose City made the funerals happen anyway. This is the group the owners told the court about when they said business was down 50 percent and at least 10 preneed files had to be moved.
If you paid Silvers directly, in cash, and never got a receipt, you are in the weakest position. Prosecutors said at least 25 families were affected. The court ordered $170,984.27 in restitution, but that money goes to the funeral home, not to families. It repays the business for money it had to absorb.
If you hold a living preneed contract purchased at Rose City during those years, contact the funeral home directly to confirm your contract is on file and funded. Indiana's Preneed Consumer Protection Fund exists for exactly this situation; its claims are approved by the State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service at public meetings, and the minutes naming each claim are public record.
Anyone can check the public court record for free. Both cases are viewable at public.courts.in.gov/mycase by searching either case number: 33C02-2505-F5-000025 (criminal) or 33C02-2411-CT-000061 (civil). The charging documents that name individual victims are not online; they can be ordered from the Henry County Clerk for $1 per page.
What This Means for You
*Obitley has public records requests pending with the Henry County Clerk and the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency for the case files and licensing records in this matter. We will update this report when they respond.*
*Sources: New Castle Courier-Times, "Judge: 'Are you done hurting the people of Henry County?'" Sept. 18, 2026; New Castle Courier-Times charging coverage, May 2025; Fox59, May 29, 2025; Indiana State Board of Funeral and Cemetery Service meeting minutes, Feb. 6, 2025, June 26, 2025, Feb. 5, 2026 and April 2, 2026; Indiana Odyssey MyCase dockets, 33C02-2505-F5-000025 and 33C02-2411-CT-000061, Henry Circuit Court 2.*
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