Indianapolis records 200th homicide of 2020 after 1 dies on west side
UPDATE: The Marion County Coroner’s Office has identified the victim of a fatal shooting in the 3600 block of Lawnview Lane Tuesday night as 18-year-old Michael Williams.
Williams died from a gunshot wound. No other details were released from the coroner’s office.
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A man who died after police were sent to a car accident Tuesday night on the west side is the city’s 200th homicide of 2020, IMPD said.
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department was sent shortly after 7:25 p.m. Tuesday to Scarlet Oak Court and Lawnview Lane. That’s in a residential area just east of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Officers found the man with “trauma” in a small, white sedan in the 3600 block of Lawnview Lane, and a medical crew was sent about 7:30 p.m. Thursday to North Tibbs Avenue and Lawnview Lane for an unsafe gunshot scene.
Police could not say yet what had caused the man’s trauma. The car suffered severe front-end damage.
No additional details on the victim or a possible suspect were immediately available.
Indianapolis recorded 179 total homicides in 2017; that’s the city’s record. In 2018, that total was 178. It dropped to 172 in 2019.
William Young, an IMPD public information officer, was at the scene of the crime Tuesday night. He expressed the department’s frustration with the growing homicide rate and noted the trend across the country with growing gun violence.
Young also said officers find the growing rate “disheartening.” He noted some homicide investigators work 24 hours at times to secure suspects.
“We know the community is frustrated,” Young added. “We hear the concerns. We know the concerns. We’re working on it.”
He said IMPD’s work includes partnering with the community to give police information and tips on crimes.
Anyone with information is urged to contact the IMPD Homicide Office at 317-327-3475 or Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-TIPS.
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