FRANKLIN, Ind. --
A Franklin police officer who was suspended without pay since January has returned to his job and will be paid for the time he missed.
Officer Bryan Burton was charged in December 2010 with battery and official misconduct after allegations that he touched an informant's genital piercing during a drug investigation.
The charges against Burton were dropped this month because the woman didn't want to take part in the case, Franklin Police Chief Tim O'Sullivan said.
Burton will receive nearly $24,000 in back pay after a merit board approved the officer's return to work.
In March 2010, Burton had been demoted and placed on a 45-day suspension for violating eight different parts of the department's code of conduct, including having sexually suggestive conversations with female informants, providing alcohol to minors, drinking while on duty and failing to report an accident.
Franklin Mayor Fred Paris said at the time that Burton was undercover for two years on a drug detail and did not have enough supervision.
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