Authorities reported that gunshots erupted outside a mall in downtown Indianapolis late Saturday night, injuring seven juveniles, including a 12-year-old. It was the third consecutive weekend that city police responded to a mass shooting.
According to Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Chief Chris Bailey, the violence occurred despite the fact that more than 25 officers were patrolling downtown Indianapolis as part of an increased police presence to control roaming bands of youths in the region during the late hours.
“My assumption, based on what we know right now, is that there was some sort of disturbance that occurred right before this, and someone or persons decided to use a gun to solve that problem, which is never the right answer,” Bailey said at a news conference on Sunday morning.
According to police, the incident occurred at 11:36 p.m. local time outside the Circle Centre Mall on West Maryland and South Illinois streets in the city’s Mile Square entertainment district, several blocks from the Indiana State Capitol building.
According to Deputy Chief Tanya Terry, chief of IMPD operations, officers patrolling Mile Square heard the gunfire and went to the site, where they discovered six juvenile victims with apparent gunshot wounds.
Terry said a seventh juvenile victim later arrived at a hospital seeking treatment for a bullet wound.
She reported that a hospital transported one victim in critical condition, but later upgraded them to stable condition. She stated that the other victims sustained non-life-threatening injuries and are all in stable condition.
Terry reported that the victims ranged in age from 12 to 17.
There were no suspects identified or arrested as of Sunday afternoon.
Investigators are requesting anyone who observed the shooting to call the police department’s Aggravated Assault Unit. Police are sifting through security video in the hopes of identifying the individuals responsible for the shooting.
According to Terry, based on the evidence recovered at the scene, investigators suspect more than one firearm was present.
“We are deeply concerned that so many of our young people have become the victims of gun violence this evening. Terry stated, “Once again, we have a situation in which young people use firearms to resolve conflict.”
Before Saturday night’s incident, the IMPD announced that it had doubled the number of police officers stationed in the Mile Square area to handle large groups of youths circulating in downtown.
“Until there is some kind of crime committed, the officers can only observe the crowds and attempt to get them dispersed,” Terry told reporters.
Terry claimed she had a message for the victims’ parents: “I believe everyone sees the messages in the evening at 10 p.m. of ‘Parents, do you know where your children are?’
“We would ask our parents to get involved in what their children are out doing, especially at these hours of the evening,” added Terry. “It’s 11:30 p.m., the evening before Easter. So, if you don’t know where your 12-year-old is, I believe that should be your top priority.”
Chief Bailey reiterated Terry’s statement.
“I’m extremely disappointed that we’re here again talking about mass violence in our city,” Bailey remarked at the time. “We all need to look in the mirror and figure out what else we can do to avoid these things from happening in the first place. But I’ll say this: It all starts at home.
The shooting occurred a week after one person was murdered and five people were injured, including a police officer, in an early morning shooting outside a bar east of downtown Indianapolis, according to police. Authorities reported that the suspect, killed on March 24, engaged in a shootout with two uniformed officers moonlighting as bar security. One of the cops involved in the battle sustained a leg injury and fell, injuring his shoulder, according to the police.
On March 16, an early morning shooting inside a bar in the Broad Ripple neighborhood north of downtown killed one man and injured six others, according to authorities. Authorities detained a 25-year-old suspect in the shooting and charged him with murder.
On February 19th, tragedy struck at a Waffle House restaurant in Indianapolis, as a 35-year-old woman lost her life in a fatal shooting. Additionally, four other individuals were wounded during the incident. According to authorities, the gunfire occurred amidst an argument between two groups of customers. Currently, no arrests have been made in connection with the incident.
