4 months later, no answers for 10-year-old shot to death
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – The rays of sun beamed through a stained glass window as Shannon Swanson sat on the front pew inside a west side church.
“He was our baby,” said Swanson through her sniffles.
As she talked, tears scrolled down her face while she shared stories about her baby boy, DeShaun Lee Swanson. She affectionately calls him little man. She describes the 10-year-old as a little boy who carried a big heart. He showcased the grit of a linebacker, and he had the maturity of someone well beyond his years.
On Sept. 19, 2015, someone took it all away. On that day, Swanson took DeShaun to a prayer vigil in the 3900 block of Graceland Avenue. No less than five minutes after arriving, shots were fired at the house and at the crowd of people who gathered to pray.
One of those shots pierced DeShaun, and he died from his injures.
“If there was a chance we could trade places, I would,” said Swanson.
In the aftermath of DeShaun’s murder there has been a prayer vigil, officers passed out fliers in the neighborhoods, and the Ten Point Coalition demanded the community to speak up about who is responsible for pulling the trigger.
Four months later, there have been no leads and no suspects – only a vague description of a silver compact car as the possible getaway vehicle.
“We can’t allow DeShaun’s murder after four months to go unsolved. We are not going to accept that. If we have to turn up the heat, we will turn up the heat, because this case ought to be a priority,” said Ten Point Leader Rev. Charles Harrison.
Harrison said there is a perception that Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department did not put as many resources into DeShaun’s case compared to other higher profile cases in the city.
“There is a perception that the same resources were not put into Deshaun’s case like Amanda Blackburn’s case,” Harrison said.
On Nov. 10, three men were arrested and charged in the murder of Blackburn. Larry Jo Taylor Jr., Jalen Watson, and Diano Gordon are all awaiting trial for allegedly killing the pregnant mother while in her home.
Despite the perception, IMPD needs that one critical tip to help detectives make an arrest in DeShaun’s murder.
If you have any information you are urged to call Crime Stoppers at 262-TIPS, or 262-8477. Tips given to Crime Stoppers are strictly anonymous.
