Indianapolis, IN

Local organization working directly with teens to find root causes of violence

Published

5 months ago

September 12, 2025

Local organization working directly with teens to find root causes of violence

INDIANAPOLIS — As gun violence continues to impact young people in Indianapolis, one organization is working directly with teens to make a change.

Brandon Randall, founder of Tru Colors Consulting, has spent 20 years mentoring youth. He said the work is deeply personal.

“I’ve lost over 50 students to gun violence and several more to the criminal justice system,” Randall said. “For me, it’s very personal work.”

Randall is currently working with 11 young men who have spent the past year researching the root causes of violence in the community.

“Hopefully, they influence other young people to get involved in the community as well,” he said.

Between July and September 1, six children under the age of 18 have been killed by gun violence in Indianapolis.

Police continue their efforts to get firearms off the streets. Just this past Sunday, officers arrested a 16-year-old on Washington Street downtown who was carrying a gun.

“There was some investigatory work being done, and that’s how officers located that individual,” said Officer Tommy Thompson with IMPD. “This is not uncommon. Our teams work very hard, our officers on the street work very hard.”

Thompson stresses that parents and guardians also play a role.

“Where is our child at? Why are they out at night? Are they allowed to be out at night? Why do they have a firearm? Who are their friends?” asked Thompson.

The 11 young men working with Randall will share their findings and personal stories during the Power of TRU Generations Violence Conference at the Madame Walker Theater.

“There are a lot of young people wanting to change,” Randall said. “They want to turn their life around, and they want their peers to change. I’m hoping people who attend this conference walk away with that.”

The conference is scheduled for Saturday, September 20, at 1 p.m.

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Indianapolis, IN

A Facebook post alleges BRICS supports ICE. The owners want to clear that up

Published

11 hours ago

January 31, 2026

Press Room

A Facebook post alleges BRICS supports ICE. The owners want to clear that up

A post from a spouse of a co-owner of BRICS went viral in Indy groups this week, leading many to call to boycott the shop.
The Broad Ripple business quickly distanced itself from the pro-ICE views but stopped short of posting their own stance.
Now, the owners are working through the aftermath.

A Broad Ripple ice cream shop found itself under fire on social media this week after one its owners posted in support of Immigration Customs and Enforcement, prompting many to pledge to stop supporting the business.

The social media ordeal in which the store BRICS found itself raises the question of whether small businesses should publicly take sides on political and civil issues and how much a business owner’s politics should dictate whether one supports the business or not.

In a lengthy interview Jan. 30 with the IndyStar, the BRICS owners said the post on the personal Facebook page of the spouse of a minority owner did not represent the sentiment of BRICS ownership. However, they say, they will not release a statement against ICE, either, preferring to remain political neutral to operate as a safe third space for people on all sides of the debate.

“We feel very differently from what was posted,” said David Vonnegut-Gabovitch, the majority owner of BRICS. “But our concern was that if our statement says we feel totally the opposite, then everybody on the other side starts going the other way.”

That was not enough for Jen Colson Estes, a Meridian-Kessler resident, who first called out the shop on social media for a Facebook post she saw made by Jenny DuBow, spouse of BRICS co-owner David DuBow. As ICE enforcement in the country has ramped up, Colson Estes posted on her personal Facebook page that she would not visit the ice cream shop because of the post.

“She has the right to post it, and we have the right to never go there again,” Colson Estes told IndyStar.

Soon after Colson Estes’s initial post on Jan. 29, it went viral on Indianapolis social media, circulating in north side, Midtown and food-focused Facebook groups. Jenny DuBow’s profile has since been made private, but screenshots on Facebook and confirmed by BRICS ownership show she reposted an “I Stand With ICE” image.

BRICS released a statement on Facebook on Jan. 30, saying that the statement did not reflect the store’s beliefs.

“We regret that posts made on a personal social media account and circulated have been attributed to our business – this is not us!” the statement read.

Vonnegut-Gabovitch, Kirstie Hileman and David DuBow co-own BRICS, which has operated along the Monon Trail in Broad Ripple for 15 years. Vonnegut-Gabovitch holds the majority stake in the company, 70%, with Hileman and DuBow having a minority stake of 20% and 10%, respectively. The three run the day-to-day operations of the company, they told IndyStar.

Yet, the names of their spouses, Jennifer DuBow and Nonie Vonnegut-Gabovitch, appear on BRICS’ website. The two are not involved in the store’s operation of the store and cannot speak for it, the three principals say.

The statement did little to calm the flames. In an interview with IndyStar, Hileman said BRICS fielded about 15 phone calls on Friday and several more the day before as the post spread. David DuBow was not present at the interview but Vonnegut-Gabovitch and Hileman said they were speaking for him as well.

The owners said they made a conscious decision not to simply write a statement decrying ICE.

“It would have likely been easier for us to just make an apology and make a political statement, but we don’t think that’s the best way,” Hileman said. “If we’re removing businesses’ right to remain neutral and be a third safe space, how is it that our public will ever be able to have safe discourse?”

That said, they are making a concerted effort to tell longtime customers and community partners that their individual views in no way align with the controversial post. Hileman and Vonnegut-Gabovitch said in an interview with IndyStar that the views of the three owners, including David DuBow, are “wildly different” than the views expressed in the post.

“It’s not something any of us were involved in, not something any of us believe, but we do respect her First Amendment right,” Vonnegut-Gabovitch said. “She has a right to her views, and I believe we couldn’t change that.”

The flap started a day before thousands of businesses across the country closed their doors in a nationwide protest of ICE sparked by agents’ fatal shooting of two U.S. citizens, 37-year-olds Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, in Minneapolis earlier this month.

Several Indianapolis businesses around town posted they would participate while others announced they would donate to causes that support undocumented immigrants.

Instead of taking to social media to take a side on ICE, the BRICS owners are encouraging people to visit the shop and have face-to-face conversations with the owners and with one another. On the afternoon of Jan. 30, the shop was quiet, with a few adults and children spread out eating ice cream.

“We want to bring it down at least for us, at least within our four walls, on our social media, bring that temperature down and move on and serve ice cream,” Vonnegut-Gabovitch said.

Alysa Guffey writes business, health and development stories for IndyStar. Have a story tip? Contact her at amguffey@usatodayco.com or on X: @AlysaGuffeyNews.

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Indianapolis, IN

Here’s how trash pickup is going to work in Indianapolis next week

Published

23 hours ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

Here’s how trash pickup is going to work in Indianapolis next week

Trash was not picked up Jan. 26-27 because of the winter storm that hit Indianapolis the weekend before. To catch up, the city chose to forgo the usual one-day rolling delay and returned to the regular collection schedule beginning Wednesday, Jan. 28.

The Department of Public Works said that if you missed trash pick-up on Jan. 26-Jan. 27, you are able to leave extra bagged trash out.

“For residents who had solid waste pickup canceled earlier this week, Monday and Tuesday, they are welcome to leave additional bagged trash that won’t fit in their cart at curbside next week,” Kyle Bloyd, chief communications officer for the Department of Public Works, told IndyStar. “Both haulers, Indy DPW and LRS (Lakeshore Recycling Systems), will collect the additional bags on Monday and Tuesday.”

So, if necessary, Indianapolis residents can place bagged trash next to their trash bins for pick up collection on Feb. 2, and Feb. 3.

The revised schedule applies to DPW and Lakeshore Recycling Systems customers throughout Indianapolis.

Did your trash get picked up? You can find what day your trash is picked up on the city’s website at indy.gov/activity/trash-pickup. If you have questions, you can contact the Department of Public Works from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at 317-327-4000.

Jade Jackson is a Public Safety Reporter for the Indianapolis Star. You can email her at Jade.Jackson@IndyStar.com and follow her on X, formerly Twitter @IAMJADEJACKSON.

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Indianapolis, IN

Indiana State Police sergeant calls it ‘heartbreaking’ as ‘selfish’ drivers hit trooper vehicles

Published

1 day ago

January 30, 2026

Press Room

Indiana State Police sergeant calls it ‘heartbreaking’ as ‘selfish’ drivers hit trooper vehicles

INDIANAPOLIS — Six Indiana State Police trooper vehicles in the Indianapolis district have been hit in just the last five days, all while responding to other crashes on icy roads.

WATCH FULL STORY BELOW

ISP sergeant calls it ‘heartbreaking’ as ‘selfish’ drivers hit trooper vehicles

The incidents come as troopers have investigated more than 600 crashes in the last five days in the Indianapolis district, according to ISP Sergeant John Perrine.

The ISP vehicles were hit while the troopers were on the side of the interstate responding to another crash.

PROVIDED

“It’s heartbreaking. It’s selfish drivers. People that drive with themselves in mind, not anyone else. They make poor decisions. They get in a hurry,” Perrine said. “Well, we’re very thankful and fortunate that none of them have suffered any serious injuries.”

The dangerous conditions persist as INDOT crews face challenges with traditional winter weather response methods. On Thursday, plow truck drivers are emptying salt from their trucks at their Indianapolis substation because the extreme cold temperatures make salt ineffective.

“We’re still seeing really cold temperatures, subzero overnight almost every night, so we can’t use salt when that happens. Anytime it’s under 15 degrees, our salt really isn’t effective. We’re dropping it, but it’s not activating,” said Jordan Yaney, public relations director for INDOT’s East Central District.

High-speed crashes on icy roads have been on the rise in recent days.

“People are getting hurt, and that’s really a scary time for us,” Perrine said.

The North Split area has been particularly problematic, with drivers getting stuck in snow buildup when trying to navigate between lanes or exit ramps.

“What we were seeing is a lot of people sliding off and getting stuck because if you miss that exit by just a second, or you’re in the left lane and need to exit all the way over onto the right and you get caught in that buildup of snow, it’s really hard to get out of it—especially if you’re in a smaller car like a sedan,” Yaney said.

INDOT crews plan to address the snow accumulation by pushing it over walls where they can safely do so as part of their cleanup response. However, there aren’t many places to put snow in the area, as crews typically push snow off mainline roads to shoulders, gores, and merge points during winter events.

As temperatures remain below freezing, Perrine warns drivers to be prepared for re-freezing and to slow down. He says the extended winter weather has been particularly challenging.

“It’s probably the longest snow event that I can remember in my 23-year career,” Perrine said. “We’re just really tired of responding to the crashes of careless drivers.”

INDOT crews continue working long 12 and even 16-hour shifts to clear every lane from white line to white line, but with bitter cold holding on, slick spots will remain.

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