New criminal charge filed against Noblesville school shooter
ANDERSON, Ind. (WISH) — A new criminal charge has been filed against the 2018 Noblesville school shooter, the Madison County Prosecutor’s Office said Tuesday.
The then 13-year-old boy shot and injured classmate Ella Whistler and teacher Jason Seaman at Noblesville West Middle School in May 2018. He was charged as a juvenile and ordered to remain incarcerated with the Indiana Department of Correction until he turned 18.
Prosecutors in Madison County accused the shooter of felony battery against a public safety official. The incident happened in March when he was 17 years old and still considered a juvenile.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the male punched a DOC counselor in the breast twice on March 20, 2023, shortly before his expected release on April 11.
The counselor told police that she allows the inmates, who she calls students, to stop by her office and talk with her when she’s not busy.
She said that on March 20, D.M. and another male entered her office and began to speak with her, but she did not have time to talk.
“She stood up and directed them out using her hands in an ushering type of motion. Both D.M. and (the other inmate) turned and began to exit, however, D.M. then turned back and punched her twice in the breast, simultaneously saying, ‘I punched your boob,” the probable cause affidavit read.
The counselor, who reported the incident to her supervisor, described the contact as “kind of a fist bump” and “indicated it was not a very hard punch,” court papers say.
Prosecutors say the shooter told investigators that the counselor “pushed him as he was leaving her office indicating and initiating horseplay,” and, in response, he “quickly turned around and gestured two play punches and accidentally contacted her breast.”
The male later “acknowledged he punched [the corrections officer] in the breast but stated it was horseplay,” adding that “he didn’t think it was a big deal” because the counselor never said anything to him and “acted as if nothing happened,” according to court documents.
An initial hearing on the new charge is set for Tuesday, May 23.
The reported incident happened just over a month before a Hamilton County judge decided against releasing the shooter.
The mayor of Noblesville said in April that the shooter, who had since turned 18, would remain jailed and receive a psychological assessment from the Indiana Department of Child Services. Once the assessment was complete, a Hamilton County judge was expected to hold a hearing to review the findings.
Officials have not provided an update on the results of the psychological assessment and did not say if a hearing would still be held to assess the findings.