(Sound of police sirens}

Mmm mm-mmmm-mm
Mmm mm-mmmm-mm

Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
I wish I had you to talk to

If a man ever needed dyin’, he did
No one had the right to say what he said about you
And it’s so cold and lonely here without you
Out there the law’s a-comin’
I’m scared and so tired of runnin’

Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
I wish I had you to talk to

It hurts to see the man that I’ve become
And to know I’ll never see the morning sun shine on the land
I’ll never see your smilin’ face or touch your hand
If just once more I could see
You, our home, and our little baby

Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
{police sirens}
I wish I had you to talk to

I hope this letter finds its way to you
Forgive me, Love, for the shame I put you through and all the tears
Hang on, Love, to the memories of those happy years
Red lights are flashin’ around me
Yeah, Love, it looks like they found me

Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
Indiana wants me
Lord, I can’t go back there
I wish I had you to talk to

Indiana wants me (this is the police, you are surrounded)
Lord, I can’t go back there (give yourself up)
Indiana wants me (this is the police, give yourself up)
Lord, I can’t go back there (you are surrounded)

{shoot-out sound effects}

Indiana Wants Me by R. Dean Taylor (1976)


Having sex - protected or unprotected - with another human being, without telling him or her that you have HIV is morally wrong. It shouldn’t be a crime, however, unless you actually transmit the virus.  

As recently reported in POZ, Indiana resident Tony M. Perkins (presumably NOT the actor who portrayed Norman Bates in “Psycho”,) pleaded guilty to felony charges for failing to tell any of his 26 girlfriends - most of whom he apparently met on a cheesy website called “plentyoffish.com”, and none of whom have tested positive for HIV - that he has our virus. The official Indiana Superior Court charging document asserted that Perkins violated Indiana statute I.C. 35-42-1-9(b) and L.C. 16-41-7-1, which purportedly make it a felony for a “carrier” not to warn that he/she has HIV.

Oddly enough, neither of the two statutes cited in the Indiana court documents actually states that failing to warn sex partners about one’s HIV is a felony. Nonetheless, Perkins copped a plea and is waiting to be sentenced.

In my view, the Indiana police prosecuted Perkins for being irresponsible under the guise of a law that didn’t actually apply - the statutes cited in the court documents have no language that support the charges. But they persecuted him for being HIV positive, and that, my friends, is a tragedy.

Knowing that you will go to jail if you fail to tell your partner that you have HIV and then give it to him/her should be enough to deter reckless conduct. Having the state punish you for keeping your secret, without transmitting the disease, is wrong.