Indiana state Sen. Greg Goode, R-Terre Haute, held a redistricting town hall at the city hall in Terre Haute, Indiana, on Nov. 1, 2025.

INDIANAPOLIS — An Indiana state senator and his family were victims of a swatting incident on Nov. 16, authorities said, just hours after President Donald Trump called him out by name on social media for not supporting mid-decade redistricting.

At around 5 p.m. local time on Nov. 16, the Vigo County Sheriff’s Office received an email stating that someone had been harmed inside the home of Sen. Greg Goode, R-Terre Haute. Authorities were initially unsuccessful in contacting anyone in the residence, but "ultimately contact was made with persons inside the home," according to Sheriff Derek Fell.

The sheriff confirmed that all people inside the home were "secure, safe, and unharmed." The email, he said, was a false report, known as swatting.

“A false or prank call of this nature will never be acceptable,” Fell said in a statement. “Not only do calls like this waste and reduce resources of deputies serving and protecting other parts of our county, they have a negative impact on the victim and their families as well.”

In a statement shared on X, Goode said he and his family were "victims of a swatting incident," and thanked Fell and Terre Haute Police Chief Kevin Barrett for their "professionalism."

"While this entire incident is unfortunate and reflective of the volatile nature of our current political climate, I give thanks to God that my family and I are ok," Goode said in the statement.

Trump criticizes Indiana's GOP senators

Earlier in the day, Trump posted on Truth Social criticizing Gov. Mike Braun and Indiana's GOP senators for the state's failed redistricting attempts, calling out Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray, R-Martinsville, and Goode by name.

"Very disappointed in Indiana State Senate Republicans, led by RINO Senators Rod Bray and Greg Goode, for not wanting to redistrict their state, allowing the United States Congress to perhaps gain two more Republican seats," he wrote on Nov. 16.

On Nov. 14, Bray announced that the state Senate would not convene in December to vote on a new congressional map because the chamber lacked the votes. Goode was one of the Senate's holdouts, previously telling the IndyStar, part of the USA TODAY Network, he would not decide until the final floor vote.

Goode is also the only lawmaker to hold a town hall on the topic to gauge public opinion. Everyone who spoke at the Terre Haute event expressed disapproval with redistricting this year.

Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sakbun, a Democrat, responded to the Nov. 16 incident on social media. Fall said his office and federal authorities are investigating, "with every intention of discovering who is responsible."

"Redistricting went from an annoying distraction to a real problem," Sakbun said in a post on X. "To those who seek to waste taxpayer dollars by engaging in swatting, we will find you and you will face legal consequences. Cut the bs."

Terre Haute is a city in Vigo County, Indiana, near the Indiana-Illinois state border. The city is about 76 miles southwest of Indianapolis.

Contact IndyStar government and politics editor Kaitlin Lange at Kaitlin.Lange@indystar.com or follow her on X @Kaitlin_Lange.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana lawmaker victim of swatting after Trump called him out over redistricting

Reporting by Kaitlin Lange, USA TODAY NETWORK / Indianapolis Star

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