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Teen Charged In Sniper Shootings Heads To Court

POSTED: 10:32 am EDT July 26, 2006
UPDATED: 8:05 pm EDT July 26, 2006

A 17-year-old boy went before a judge on Wednesday, a day after his arrest in connection with Sunday's interstate highway shootings that killed one man and injured another.

Zachariah Blanton, of Gaston, made an appearance in a Jackson County courtroom. Blanton was handcuffed and his eyes were cast downward as he was escorted into and out of court, 6News' Ben Morriston reported.

Blanton faces charges of murder, attempted murder and three counts of criminal recklessness in connection. Early Sunday, police said, he shot at two vehicles on Interstate 65 near Seymour -- killing a New Albany man and leaving an Iowa man with minor injuries -- and two vehicles on I-69, near Muncie in east-central Indiana, about two hours later.


Teen Charged In Sniper Shootings Heads To Court

Jackson County prosecutor Stephen Pierson said Wednesday that although Blanton has been cooperative, the motive for the shootings remains unclear.

"Normally in a murder case, you have a motive because somebody is angry or someone's jealous, or there's an insurance policy that ... they want to get the proceeds of," Pierson said. "This is not that kind of case. Indiana law only requires that one person kill another human being knowingly or intentionally. That's murder."

Zachariah Blanton.

Pierson said Blanton was on a hunting trip with relatives and friends in Jackson County on Saturday when he was involved in an argument over gutting a deer. He left the area and went to Interstate 65 to begin the shooting spree, Pierson said.

Blanton was being held Wednesday in the Jackson County Jail without bond. His trial is scheduled for December.

Pierson said he is considering seeking the death penalty if Blanton is convicted. However, the Associated Press reported that state law and U.S. Supreme Court rulings do not permit executions of those who committed their crimes when they were younger than 18.

Blanton also could face charges in Delaware County stemming from the I-69 shootings, in which no one was injured.

A team of local law enforcement, state police and federal authorities began investigating Blanton on Monday after an acquaintance gave a tip to a Delaware County reserve sheriff's deputy, police said. The reserve deputy contacted the Delaware County sheriff, setting events in motion that led to Tuesday's arrest.

Blanton's grandmother Patricia Blanton was arrested this week on a charge of obstruction of justice. Police said she tried to keep investigators from finding the rifle authorities believe was used in the highway shootings.

Investigators said Blanton was both cooperative and remorseful as authorities gathered evidence in the case on Tuesday.

"It is my understanding that his cooperation was to such an extent that it was sufficient for probable cause, and I would call that a confession," Indiana State Police Superintendent Paul Whitesell said.

  • Stay with 6News and TheIndyChannel.com for updates to this story.

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