Indianapolis, IN
Families sue Indianapolis after 2 police shooting deaths
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis city government is facing lawsuits from two families over separate incidents that left two men dead during traffic stops.
On Oct. 23, 2023, Darcel Edwards was shot after climbing into a tree. Edwards had run from police after being pulled over near 25th Street and Columbia Avenue.
His mother, Roselyn Edwards Rogers, said Thursday she misses her son every day. “He had a beautiful smile. He was a lovely father and a son.”
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department says Edwards put his hand in his pocket as officers asked him to come down from the tree.
Attorney Nathaniel Lee said Thursday that Edwards mental health issues when he encountered the police in 2023. “One of telltale sign was he said, ‘Call my mama!’ You’re not going to shoot someone who wants their mom to come to the scene.”
IMPD says Officer Gunnar Gossett fired because Edwards put his hands where the policeman couldn’t see them.
Lee is frustrated with how investigators handled the case. “Shortly after they killed the gentleman, they came out, cut the tree down and shredded the tree.”
On Nov. 17, 2023, Leandre Houston was shot by IMPD Officer Mitchell Farnsley. Houston was a passenger in the car driven by Demarcus Whitley.
Whitley was wanted on several firearms charges. Whitley surrendered but Houston ran from officers and was shot after leaping a fence.
Lee says the officer didn’t need to shoot Houston. “He’s behind the fence at the time, and his body camera was obscured by the fence, which tells you he’s not in danger of being shot.”
IMPD Police Chief Chris Bailey said several times that suspects make the officers jobs more difficult when they run from them.
But, Lee said, general distrust of police, especially in the African American communities, caused these men to fear for their lives. “We must have a standard where you can only shoot a suspect when your life is in danger, or someone else. That’s got to be the legal standard we adhere to, without that standard no one is safe.”
IMPD said it cannot comment on this case while it is pending in court.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE
Indianapolis, IN
Indianapolis councilman says ‘No Data Centers’ note was left at his home after someone opened fire
The home of a councilman in Indianapolis was shot at early Monday in what local police said was an “isolated, targeted incident.”
The incident came less than a week after the Indianapolis Metropolitan Development Commission voted 6 to 2 on April 1 to approve rezoning to allow the construction of a data center.
Ron Gibson, a Democrat who represents District 8 on the council, spoke out in support of the rezoning and the efforts to build the data center in his district.
“Earlier this morning, between approximately 12:45 a.m. and 12:50 a.m., just a few hours after Easter Sunday, an individual fired 13 rounds at the front door of my home and left a note on my doorstep that read, ‘No Data Centers,’” Gibson said in a Monday statement.
Councilman Ron Gibson
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said it was called to the home on Monday morning, and officers found evidence that gunshots had been fired at the house. Police said no injuries were reported.
“I understand that public service can bring strong opinions and disagreement, but violence is never the answer, especially when it puts families at risk,” Gibson said in his statement.
The Indianapolis-Marion County City-County Council did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider.
The data center is set to be built by Metrobloks, a data center developer based in Los Angeles. Following the vote last week, Gibson shared a statement on social media promoting the project.
“Metrobloks has the potential to bring significant investment, create jobs, and generate long-term tax revenue that supports infrastructure, housing, and essential services,” the statement said.
A data center boom is happening across the US, with companies pouring billions into building the infrastructure to keep up with demand in the era of AI. The data centers have faced increased opposition, with critics pointing to the high resource costs, from water to energy, and other issues like noise pollution, as detailed in a Business Insider investigation.
Indianapolis, IN
Recorder Rewind: NCAA Division III basketball championship (Photos)
Indianapolis, IN
Indianapolis City-County Councilor says IMPD officer shoved him during protest
INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis City-County Councilor says he was shoved by a police officer during a protest Saturday night.
In a post on Facebook, Jesse Brown — who represents council district 13 — indicated that a member of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department approached a group of protestors and began shoving and grabbing them.
“Tonight, an IMPD officer approached a group of protestors from behind/beside them, did not identify himself or issue verbal orders, but started grabbing and shoving people and cussing at them to move (we were stuck behind other people blocking the sidewalk),” Brown wrote on Facebook.
Brown added that he asked the officer for his badge number and told him he was a City-County Councilor.
“I told the IMPD officer who was shoving people that I wanted his badge number,” Brown wrote. “He refused to give it. I told him I was a City Councilor. He said that he didn’t care WHO I was and grabbed my arm to shove me as well.”
Brown finished his post by confirming that he filed a formal incident report on his encounter with the officer. He also offered some criticism for the officer in the final sentence of his post.
“Officers have a difficult job, but if this is how he treated two white male candidates / elected officials, I do not trust him to serve the public and de-escalate tense situations.”
Jackson Franklin, who is running for Indiana’s fifth district seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, was also involved in the incident. He made a Facebook post with greater detail on the incident.
Franklin said he, Brown and others were protesting near Lucas Oil Stadium ahead of Saturday’s NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Final Four games. Franklin said he and other protestors were at the Final Four “to demand the NCAA stop using the same airliners that ICE uses to break apart and deport families in this racist injustice system.”
A report from The Athletic that was syndicated by Yahoo Sports indicates that at least one airliner has contracts with the NCAA to transport student-athletes to tournaments and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to deport undocumented immigrants.
In his post, Franklin said the officer involved in the incident “shoved/assaulted many of the protestors, including Indianapolis City-council person Jesse Brown.” Franklin added that the officer did not provide any warnings before he began shoving protestors
“I thought initially it was going to be some MAGA person just walking past that was offended by our anti-ICE chants, but I turned around and noticed that he was wearing a uniform,” Franklin wrote in his Facebook post. “It was only then he gave his commands to continue to move and he immediately went to push around many others, using his uniform as an excuse to harass those he disagreed with politically.
“There was absolutely no need for violence and the protest organizers filed a complaint, but I have no hope of any action occurring because of this complaint. While the lone officer assaulted us, there were about 10-15 other officers looking around awkwardly unsure of what to do, not protecting our first amendment right while also probably realizing the officer was way out of line and should have just asked us nicely to keep the movement on the public sidewalk going quicker rather than using violence as the first and only answer.”
FOX59/CBS4 reached out to IMPD for a statement on Brown and Franklin’s comments. As of this article’s publication, the agency had not responded to those inquiries.
Brown has been at the center of multiple city-county council disputes over the last 14 months. In February 2025, Brown — whose district encompasses portions of downtown and the near east side of Indy — said the city-county council’s democratic caucus expelled him from their ranks.
Brown also introduced a motion to remove the council’s president and vice president in July.
As of this article’s publication, no additional information on the incident Brown, Franklin and others were involved in had been made available.
This is a developing story; check back for updates.
-
Atlanta, GA2 days ago1 teenage girl killed, another injured in shooting at Piedmont Park, police say
-
South-Carolina1 week agoSouth Carolina vs TCU predictions for Elite Eight game in March Madness
-
Movie Reviews5 days agoVaazha 2 first half review: Hashir anchors a lively, chaos-filled teen tale
-
Vermont1 week ago
Skier dies after fall at Sugarbush Resort
-
Politics1 week agoTrump’s Ballroom Design Has Barely Been Scrutinized
-
Politics1 week agoJD Vance says he was ‘obsessed’ with UFOs, believes aliens are actually ‘demons’
-
Entertainment5 days agoInside Ye’s first comeback show at SoFi Stadium
-
Politics1 week agoJeffries declines to break with indicted Democrat after ethics panel’s guilty verdict