Indianapolis' violent toll: 12 shot, 6 dead in 60 hours
INDIANAPOLIS — A violent weekend in Indianapolis left at least 12 people shot and six dead in 60 hours.
"It was a very violent weekend in Indianapolis. We're very concerned about that," said Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Capt. Rich Riddle.
Riddle said the shootings with known motives stemmed from disputes over property and disputes over domestic problems.
"Those are all issues that in our eyes are preventable," Riddle said. "Is it worth taking someone's life over something as simple as a cellphone? Or something as simple as an on-going dispute with the ex-boyfriend or the ex-husband of your current wife?"
The latest fatal shooting happened about 5 a.m. Monday, police spokesman Sgt. Kendale Adams said. Officers found the man shot to death inside a parked car.
This was the weekend's second fatal shooting on the same street. On Saturday afternoon, Charles Turner, 30, was shot multiple times on Campbell Avenue. Police believe Turner's death was the result of a domestic incident involving Turner and another man, who was critically wounded.
The streak of violence began about 5 p.m. Friday when police say David Sanders, 35, of Indianapolis, was fatally shot in rush-hour traffic on Indianapolis' west side.
Two more victims were injured Saturday morning in shootings on the south side.
Paul Thompson, 38, shot Sarah McKinney, 23, at the Courtyard Marriott, shortly before 10 a.m., police said.
A short time later, police said Thompson traveled about 3 miles northwest of the hotel where he shot Darryl Nichols, 37. McKinney and Nichols were taken to the hospital in critical but stable condition, police said.
Thompson, McKinney and Nichols all worked at the hotel on different shifts, police said. Officers arrested Thompson in Joliet, Ill., later Saturday. The motive for the shootings is believed to be a domestic dispute, Riddle said.
About 2:30 a.m. Sunday, two people were found dead in a parked SUV.
Within the next hour, police responded to two more shootings, with the victims taken to the hospital.
Another man was shot to death on the north side about 5:30 p.m. Sunday. Anthony Morris, 18, later died at the hospital. This shooting may have stemmed from a dispute over a cellphone, Riddle said.
Not included in the tally of violent shootings, another body was found this weekend floating in the White River on Sunday. Metropolitan police and the Indianapolis Fire Department recovered the torso of a man from the river.
The violence, Riddle said, can be linked to a range of deep-seated social issues including poverty, unemployment and a tendency to resort to violence as means of conflict resolution.
"All those lend themselves to crime," Riddle said. "We're trying to figure out exactly what some of those root issues are ... and seeing how best we can address them from here."
Raymond Carver showed up at the scene of Monday morning's homicide. Carver knows well the pain that violence leaves on a family; his son was shot to death in March.
"I'm sick of homicides," said Carver.
Carver said he spent 2015 as part of a group of volunteers who lent comfort and prayer to homicide victims. On March 10, his son Ramon Carver, 26, was shot to death in the parking lot of the Bavarian Village apartments. Marcus Crowdus, 23, is wanted in connection with the shooting.
Carver said the community must work together to prevent violence.
"We're going to reach out to these young guys and try to encourage these guys that they don't have to put a gun in their hands and go out and kill one another," Carver said. "They can do whatever they choose to do in life besides homicides and taking each other's lives."
Contributing: Kristine Guerra, Olivia Lewis and Justin Mack, The Indianapolis Star. Follow Vic Ryckaert on Twitter: @vicryc