Indianapolis, IN
Thank you, Indianapolis! – Indianapolis Recorder
The recent 2024 NBA All-Star game demonstrated to many Indianapolis residents and a national and global audience the positive attributes of Indianapolis Public Schools. I was honored to serve as a member of the Board of Directors, composed of community and civic leaders determined to have Indianapolis make an indelible mark as the host of the NBA All-Star game.
Throughout the weekend, IPS alumni helped make the event memorable. Our proud alumni — including Mike Epps, George Hill, Trey Lyles, Vivica Fox, and Oscar Robertson — all contributed to a weekend of events that truly placed Indianapolis front and center for the state, the nation, and in fact, globally. Each gave their time and talents to support various events that reflected our community’s diversity.
Thanks to Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds — a supporter of Indianapolis Public Schools — for speaking with our students at Carl Wilde School 79 and surprising them with gifts of musical instruments through the national Music Will program. His words of encouragement did reach our students and will make a positive impact on their futures. Thank you to the NBA Moms (mothers of NBA players) for donating shoes and other items to support our students at Anna Brochhausen School 88. The Christamore House, where IPS School Board member Diane Arnold devoted countless hours to make a difference, was the beneficiary of remodeled facilities and a visit by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, Pacers owner Herb Simon and countless community supporters and advocates for IPS.
From the very beginning, IPS was involved. Hundreds of our students participated in the “Love Letters to Basketball” initiative, writing postcards that greeted our guests upon arrival to our city. More than one hundred students, staff, and alumni attended the NBA Opening Ceremony event on Thursday, where our Crispus Attucks High School was highlighted. This event also included a performance by our IPS All-City Band (supported by students from our schools) and the unveiling of the Oscar Robertson statue that’s being created and will be placed outside of Crispus Attucks High School (his alma mater) upon its completion. On Friday, we participated in honoring Oscar Robertson during a tribute to “The Big O” hosted by Radio One.
During NBA All-Star weekend, we held a special showing of “A Touch of Glory,” a play about the 1955 state championship team from Crispus Attucks. Written by Laura Town and produced by GangGang and Deborah Asante & Artists, the play — which had a multiple-week run — was attended by a record number of attendees. That 1955 state championship team from IPS’s Crispus Attucks High School was the first all-Black basketball team to win an Indiana state basketball championship. Those team members, which included Oscar Robertson, overcame considerable societal odds to perform with class and competition on the court. They remain role models in overcoming adversity and are a tribute to diversity.
In addition, our students participated in an e-sports program at Butler University to get first-hand experience with the program and to consider majoring in that area. Students at Arlington and Harshman Middle Schools participated in the NBA G League Sneakerverse PL(AI)GROUND event, where they had the opportunity to create sneakers using artificial intelligence (AI), an awesome STEM opportunity for these future alumni. Our students also participated in basketball clinics and camps while our coaches received additional training on techniques and successful coaching. Finally, throughout NBA All-Star weekend, we received numerous surprise donations from companies and organizations to support our students.
Dr. Martin Luther King once said, “Everyone can be great because everyone can serve.” He is right. We are proud to be a part of creating a special All-Star weekend and grateful that, in turn, our Indianapolis community embraced our students and showed why we are proud each day to say, “I am IPS!” Thank you, Indianapolis for believing in and investing in the 31,000 students enrolled in our Indianapolis Public Schools. That is a true Return on Investment (ROI) for Indianapolis’ and Indiana’s future.
Dr. Aleesia Johnson
Superintendent
Indianapolis police shoot homicide suspect on South Harding Street
Indianapolis police shot a homicide suspect after a pursuit ended near I-70 on May 28, 2026. The suspect is in stable condition.
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Indianapolis police shot a homicide suspect after a vehicle pursuit that ended west of downtown near Interstate 70.
Just before 8:30 p.m. May 28, 2026 Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers were dispatched to a shooting in the first block of North Rural Street. Arriving officers found Patricia Wieber, 65, with gunshot wounds. Wieber was pronounced dead after being taken to the hospital.
Witnesses were able to give police information about the shooter and officers tracked the suspect to the 7500 block of Bullock Court on the city’s south side. The suspect, identified by police as Ronald Cross, 75, got into a different vehicle with another man. While tracking that vehicle officers attempted a traffic stop near West Southport and Bluff roads. The driver, who is not implicated in the homicide, got out of the vehicle without incident and was taken into custody.
Police said Cross then slid into the vehicle’s driver seat and fled. Officers used stop sticks and then in the 1000 block of South Harding Street near I-70 a SWAT officer used a vehicle to perform a PIT maneuver to stop the SUV, said Kendale Adams, IMPD deputy chief of criminal investigations.
After the vehicle was stopped officers shot the suspect, Adams said. Cross was taken to the hospital in stable condition. No officers were injured.
Adams said two firearms were located at the scene.
During a news conference at the scene, Indianapolis police chief Tanya Terry extended her thoughts to the family of Wieber who was killed in what police believe was a domestic violence situation. She also praised her officers’ handling of the situation.
“[Our officers] did exactly what our community expects them do to in situations like this,” Terry said. “Our officers worked with bravery, coordination and precision in their attempts to safely bring the suspect into custody. I’m extremely proud of them for the work that they’ve done.”
The chief added that Cross would be facing charges in the case and police confirmed hours later that Cross was arrested on a murder charge.
The shooting involving police was among a string of shootings across the city, including one downtown roughly two hours before that left a man in critical condition.
“It’s been a difficult night for our city,” Terry said.
The officers involved in shooting Cross have been placed on administrative leave, per department policy. The Civilian Use of Force Review Board will have a hearing on the shooting and body and dash cameras were activated during the shooting, Adams said.
It is unclear whether Cross fired at officers and what makes and models of firearms were found by police.
Asked those questions by IndyStar, an unnamed IMPD spokesperson did not provide additional information and instead referred to a press release that did not contain the answers.
This is the fourth shooting involving Indianapolis police since the start of the year.
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Get more information of shootings involving Indianapolis police here.
After an IMPD officer-involved shooting, what comes next?
From investigations and reviews to public updates and department procedures, this is what happens after an IMPD officer-involved shooting.
Indianapolis scored all three of their runs in the fifth inning on a single from Billy Cook and a two-run home run from Ronny Simon. It marked the third time the
José Plasencia brings Cuban cuisine to Fountain Square’s Inferno Room
Cuban food never got the opportunity to evolve. Now at the Inferno Room, José Plasencia is giving his homeland cuisine a second chance.
A standout burger can come from unexpected places, as evidenced by one Indianapolis restaurant whose unconventional take on the American classic has earned it a spot on a national USA Today list.
There’s only one burger on the menu at the recently reimagined Inferno Room in Fountain Square, but it’s a good one.
Chef José Plasencia’s rendition of the Cuban frita, a beef-chorizo burger defined by a topping of fried shoestring potatoes, joined heavy hitters from across the country on USA TODAY’s pantheon of patties.
The USA Today list included places like Mr. Bartley’s Burgers, a veritable institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts as well as Jay’s Burgers in Louisville and Sacred Beast in Cincinnati.
Indianapolis’ best-known burger spot, the more than century-old Workingman’s Friend, did not make the national list but appeared alongside the Inferno Room on USA TODAY’s roundup of exemplary Midwest burgers. Both were featured on IndyStar’s list of 10 burgers to try around town.
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