Police Shoot Suspect; Find Woman Dead in Hendricks County

HENDRICKS COUNTY, Ind. — A suspect was shot and killed by police after a domestic dispute in Hendricks County on Monday.

According to Indiana State Police, the agency tasked with investigating the incident, Hendricks County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the 600 block of East Edgewood Drive around 1 p.m. to look into a reported domestic disturbance. When police arrived at the scene, they encountered a male subject outside a residence.

During the encounter, the subject exited and entered a residence several times. At one point during his interaction with law enforcement, the subject brandished a long gun and pointed it at officers.

After the subject brandished the weapon, police began to negotiate with him. HCSO also asked for additional assistance at the scene, which led officers from the Brownsburg, Danville, Plainfield and Avon police departments to respond to the area.

The suspect’s encounter with law enforcement ended when six officers shot at him. First responders rendered medical aid to the suspect after the shooting, but he was ultimately pronounced dead at the scene.

Because they were called to the area to assist with a domestic disturbance, police entered the residence they found the suspect at. Investigators did not find anybody inside the home during a search.

After further examination of the property, however, police located a female subject in a grassy area located outside the home in question. Per ISP, the woman was suffering from traumatic injuries when officers found her, and she was pronounced dead at the scene.

Officers also found some personal belongings burning on the property during the incident. Investigators are still working to determine if there was any significance to the burning items.

Local law enforcement called state police to the scene after the shooting, requesting troopers investigate the incident.

ISP has not released the names of the officers who fired shots during the incident. Investigators indicated that at least one officer from each of the agencies at the scene fired shots.

The officers who fired their service weapons during the incident have been placed on administrative leave. The decisions to place officers on administrative leave were made by each of the departments with personnel involved in the shooting.

State police have not yet identified the suspect or the female subject they found dead on the property. Officials plan to publicly release their identities once their families have been properly notified of their deaths.

ISP did not specify how the female subject sustained traumatic injuries. Troopers have not confirmed anything about the relationship the suspect and female subject had with each other.

Investigators reported that they were called to the scene by a relative of one of the parties involved in the domestic dispute. Neither of the individuals implicated in the initial disturbance are believed to have called law enforcement.

“Any time domestic violence escalates to the fact that loss of life has occurred, multiple people are impacted by that,” ISP Master Trooper Nick Klingkammer said during a media briefing. “You have families, you have friends, neighbors, coworkers and things like that, so there’s always going to be that sense of loss. You know, what could we have done? Maybe something different. So again, that’s why we encourage those people who are in those situations to please reach out and ask for the help. We are more than welcome to help or find you the help if we can’t do it ourselves.”

State police will submit the findings of their investigation to the Hendricks County Prosecutor’s Office for a review. ISP described the area the shooting occurred in as being situated between Danville and Plainfield. The area is technically unincorporated, and that is why it falls under the purview of the sheriff’s office.