Mayor Pledges Action After 5 Killed In Shootings

INDIANAPOLIS -- Indianapolis officials held an emergency meeting on Saturday following four shootings late Friday and early Saturday that left five people dead and four others injured, two of them critically.

The wave of violence began at about 10 p.m. in the 700 block of Fletcher Avenue. Greg Bryant, 44, was found shot to death in his back yard.

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Images: Five Killed In Four Shootings
Five Killed In String Of Shootings

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At 1:40 a.m., police were called to the 3500 block of Station Street, where Jack Berry, 16, was found dead in a homeowner's front yard. Billy Isaac Jr., 18, was also badly hurt in that shooting. He was hit in the head and neck. Detectives said an altercation that led to the shootings began earlier at an under-21 club, 6News' Tanya Spencer reported.

At about 3 a.m., Frederick Meeks, 27, was critically injured when he was shot in the chest in the 2300 block of New Jersey Street.

Also at about 3 a.m., Maurice White, 26, was found shot to death in his car in an alley behind The Vault nightclub. Detectives said he had just left the club.

At about 3:30 a.m., four more people who were also at the Vault were shot. Two of them, Antonio Jones, 23, and Richard Taylor, 18, were killed at a Marathon gas station on Delaware Street. Two other men also were injured, police said.

The overnight slayings came during a week of Indianapolis violence that also included a murder-suicide, a double slaying, a woman found shot to death and the killing of a cabdriver during a robbery.

The recent violence follows the June 1 slayings of seven people in an east side home, the city's worst mass killing in 25 years. Following those slayings, the Indianapolis Police Department took a series of steps to fight violent crime including moving detectives and community resource officers to patrol duty and stepped-up coverage of high-crime areas.

Police have identified three people they believe were involved in at least one of the string of shootings. Investigators are asking for help to find Reginald Bell, 19, Corey Andrews, 21, and Cortez Cunningham. Anonymous tips can be made to Crime Stoppers at 317-262-TIPS.

Violence Prompts Emergency Meeting

The city's Criminal Justice Planning Council met for several hours to come up with a plan to combat the disturbing increase in homicides.

Part of the plan will include more officers, longer court hours and more jail space, 6News' Jennifer Carmack reported.

"We're not going to make arrests just for the sake of making arrests or for statistical purposes. They are going to be quality arrests, hopefully felony arrests to remove drugs and guns from the streets," said Indianapolis police Chief Michael Spears.

Early release was one of the reasons cited for the increase in violent crime.

"I don't care if we string wire around the Circle. No matter where those beds are, I don't think it's going to work unless we have the space to keep them locked up," said Marion County prosecutor Carl Brizzi.

All of the changes are considered an emergency fix. The long-term solutions are expected to be complex and expensive.

"We found the money to build a football stadium (and) … convention center. We've got to put the same level of effort into this. We have to do what it takes," said Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson. "This is an extreme emergency and we've got to pull together and do whatever it takes. We've already flooded the streets with police officers, we had police officers practically next to all these crimes. People are brazen, they are shooting people practically in front of police officers."

Because of the Allstate 400 at the Brickyard this weekend, many officers are assigned to the track. Officers are not being taken away from there, but will be on the streets in full force beginning Monday.