Judges in Hamilton County on Tuesday fired a Superior Court magistrate charged with drug possession and two other felonies just hours after the Indiana Supreme Court had suspended him.

William Greenaway, 50, a magistrate in Hamilton County Superior Court for eight years, was charged Monday with possession of methamphetamine, resisting law enforcement and obstructing justice, all felonies.

As a magistrate, he is hired by the elected judges to hear cases in their courtrooms. The judges voted Tuesday to terminate his employment immediately, the court administrator said in a news release.

Senior Judge Jeffrey Eggers will take Greenaway's place as magistrate beginning April 1.

Earlier Tuesday the Supreme Court suspended Greenaway with pay, which is required by state law when a judge is charged with a felony

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Tipton County Judge Thomas Lett has been named as special judge to handle the criminal case, and he appointed Howard County Prosecutor Mark McCann as special prosecutor to "avoid any appearance of impropriety," according to court documents.

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Greenaway was arrested Wednesday after State Police set up a meth purchase with an informant who told them the judge was a regular user, according to court records. The alleged buy was in a room in Noblesville that police captured on video and audio. When police approached Greenaway to make the arrest, he allegedly swallowed the evidence and had to be taken to Riverview Hospital in Noblesville.

Since then, Greenaway has been admitted to Community North Hospital in Indianapolis under the supervision of mental health professionals, according to a court filing, and has not yet been booked into the Hamilton County Jail.

When he is released, “the defendant shall comply with the mandates of any treatment, including that directed by mental health professionals affiliated with Community North Hospital,” according to the state order on terms of his release from custody after he is processed.

State Police Sgt. John Perrine said it was “standard procedure" for State Police to wait until all medical treatments are completed before officers take a defendant to jail.

IndyStar's efforts to reach Greenaway have been unsuccessful, and no lawyer was listed for him in court documents.

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Call IndyStar reporter John Tuohy at 317-444-6418. Follow on Twitter and Facebook.