Indy 2024 Homicide Motives Dominated by "Arguments..."

Source: Donnie Burgess / WIBC’s Donnie Burgess

INDIANAPOLIS — You may hear about a murder on the news and wonder what caused one person to take another’s life. That’s a question asked by police, and sometimes, they don’t have a definitive answer.

Most homicide cases that have been cleared by Indianapolis Metro Police so far this year list the motive as “Unknown” or “Argument”, according to the statistics provided by the department in the latest monthly homicide report.

IMPD states there have been 138 total homicides as of August 29th. The report was prepared and dated Sunday, September 1st. Ninety-two of those 138 homicides remain unsolved as of this writing, with only 46 being labeled “cleared.” However, “Unknown” and “Argument” are not the only homicide motives listed by the department, although they do dominate the numbers.

Here’s a breakdown of what IMPD considers the root cause of this year’s cleared homicide cases:

• Other: 4 cases
• Unknown: 16 cases
• Argument: 13 cases
• Recklessness: 1 case
• Abuse: 1 case
• Robbery: 1 case
• Fight: 1 case

IMPD does not list the motive of nine other cleared homicide cases, which were omitted from the report. Some homicide cases that did occur in Marion County are also not listed as IMPD states they may be investigated by a separate department.

The motive statistic labeled as “Unknown” is usually the result of a suspect, witness, or both, being unwilling to talk about the circumstances of the homicide. IMPD says “Unknown” usually changes at trial when facts are presented by the prosecution and the true motive of the crime can be revealed.

The latest cleared homicide case listed by IMPD is August 21st killing of George Nelson, owner of Pa & Ma’s Backyard Barbeque, on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street on Indy’s near north side.

IMPD listed Nelson’s homicide as cleared in just five days, after the arrest of Justin Jarvis Jones.

The motive for Nelson’s killing is listed as “Argument.”