masreyno
09-24-2004, 18:08
Star report
September 24, 2004
A Butler University Police Department officer was shot and killed this morning in the parking lot at Hinkle Fieldhouse, and his suspected assailant was shot less than three hours later a short distance away.
The officer, who university officials identified as James Davis, 31, was pronounced dead at 11:08 a.m. from a single gunshot wound to the head. He had been with the Butler police since January, 2003.
Police set up a perimeter from 46th Street to 49th Street between Sunset Lane and Boulevard Place as they searched for the suspect, who fled the scene of the 10:30 a.m. shooting on foot.
At 12:45 p.m., police engaged the suspect in the 4400 block of North Illinois Street. The suspect was shot and has been transported to Wishard Memorial Hospital.
Police late this afternoon identified the suspect as Kahdir Al Khattab, 26. He was in critical condition.
Al Khattab had been wanted on an arrest warrant for battery.
Indianapolis police retracted their identification of the suspect as Kevin Williams. The name was linked to the shooting because the last thing the slain officer did before he was shot was request a background check on a Kevin Williams.
Police said they don't know why Al Khattab identified himself to Davis as Kevin Williams.
A suspicious man had been watching members of the women's basketball team work out in the fieldhouse for perhaps as long as 45 minutes until he was asked to leave. Someone inside the fieldhouse apparently called for help, summoning the Butler officer to Hinkle.
Police, many armed with rifles or shotguns, swarmed through the Butler-Tarkington neighborhood looking for the suspect in yards and garages.
Police said two Marion County Sheriff's deputies spotted the suspect lying down in the 4400 block of N. Illinois. Police said Al Khattab pulled the Butler officer's gun from his cargo pants and fired at the deputies, who returned fire. None of the officers was hit.
Chester Cox, 77, who was visiting the area, heard the commotion on Illinois Street. "I heard at least four or five gunshots in rapid succession," he said. "A lady friend said to me, 'Is that fireworks?' I said, 'No, that's gunshots."
Schools in the area were also locked down. Those schools included IPS School 43, 55, 70, 84 and 91, Broad Ripple High School, Shortridge Middle School, Sidener Middle School and International School of Indiana.
Butler spokeswoman Maureen Manier said, "No question about it, it is a very tight-knit community. The police force are highly trained. The Butler family is in mourning and our hearts go out to everyone involved."
The Butler police department has 16 officers. Chief David Selby requested that Indianapolis police homicide handle the investigation.
"We'll do everything it takes," IPD Chief Jerry Barker said this afternoon. "They (Butler police) can count on us to do whatever they need, including taking their runs. (The pain is) acutely felt. My heart goes out to Chief Selby, having gone through this myself."
Indianapolis police Patrolman Timothy "Jake" Laird was slain Aug. 18 in a gun battle with a delusional man. Three other officers were wounded. The suspect, who earlier that day killed his mother, was killed by police.
Shelley McFarland, a junior at Butler, was walking on 46th street just west of Cornelius Avenue at 10:45 a.m. as police cars were speeding by to set up road blocks. "I'm a little shocked," she said. "This is very scary. Not the best day to walk to school."
Police cars were at nearly every intersection in the area, with helicopters circling overhead.
Butler University biology professor Richard Miller, 57, said university officials sent out an e-mail telling everyone on campus to stay where they are and not to go outside.
At International School of Indiana, adjacent to Hinkle Fieldhouse, teachers were at the front door peering out the window. They said, through the window, that the school was in lockdown and that the students were safe.
Jim Lehman, 45, from Carmel, was working on a garage at an investment property at the intersection of North Boulevard and 52nd Street near Butler when the shooting occurred. He said police told him to secure his house and to lock his back doors to make sure no intruders could get in. "It's a tough situation when an officer gets shot," he said. "What are you going to do?"
Read tomorrow's Indianapolis Star for more details about this story.
Star reporters Tom Spalding, Eunice Trotter, Vic Ryckaert and Theodore Kim contributed to this story.
September 24, 2004
A Butler University Police Department officer was shot and killed this morning in the parking lot at Hinkle Fieldhouse, and his suspected assailant was shot less than three hours later a short distance away.
The officer, who university officials identified as James Davis, 31, was pronounced dead at 11:08 a.m. from a single gunshot wound to the head. He had been with the Butler police since January, 2003.
Police set up a perimeter from 46th Street to 49th Street between Sunset Lane and Boulevard Place as they searched for the suspect, who fled the scene of the 10:30 a.m. shooting on foot.
At 12:45 p.m., police engaged the suspect in the 4400 block of North Illinois Street. The suspect was shot and has been transported to Wishard Memorial Hospital.
Police late this afternoon identified the suspect as Kahdir Al Khattab, 26. He was in critical condition.
Al Khattab had been wanted on an arrest warrant for battery.
Indianapolis police retracted their identification of the suspect as Kevin Williams. The name was linked to the shooting because the last thing the slain officer did before he was shot was request a background check on a Kevin Williams.
Police said they don't know why Al Khattab identified himself to Davis as Kevin Williams.
A suspicious man had been watching members of the women's basketball team work out in the fieldhouse for perhaps as long as 45 minutes until he was asked to leave. Someone inside the fieldhouse apparently called for help, summoning the Butler officer to Hinkle.
Police, many armed with rifles or shotguns, swarmed through the Butler-Tarkington neighborhood looking for the suspect in yards and garages.
Police said two Marion County Sheriff's deputies spotted the suspect lying down in the 4400 block of N. Illinois. Police said Al Khattab pulled the Butler officer's gun from his cargo pants and fired at the deputies, who returned fire. None of the officers was hit.
Chester Cox, 77, who was visiting the area, heard the commotion on Illinois Street. "I heard at least four or five gunshots in rapid succession," he said. "A lady friend said to me, 'Is that fireworks?' I said, 'No, that's gunshots."
Schools in the area were also locked down. Those schools included IPS School 43, 55, 70, 84 and 91, Broad Ripple High School, Shortridge Middle School, Sidener Middle School and International School of Indiana.
Butler spokeswoman Maureen Manier said, "No question about it, it is a very tight-knit community. The police force are highly trained. The Butler family is in mourning and our hearts go out to everyone involved."
The Butler police department has 16 officers. Chief David Selby requested that Indianapolis police homicide handle the investigation.
"We'll do everything it takes," IPD Chief Jerry Barker said this afternoon. "They (Butler police) can count on us to do whatever they need, including taking their runs. (The pain is) acutely felt. My heart goes out to Chief Selby, having gone through this myself."
Indianapolis police Patrolman Timothy "Jake" Laird was slain Aug. 18 in a gun battle with a delusional man. Three other officers were wounded. The suspect, who earlier that day killed his mother, was killed by police.
Shelley McFarland, a junior at Butler, was walking on 46th street just west of Cornelius Avenue at 10:45 a.m. as police cars were speeding by to set up road blocks. "I'm a little shocked," she said. "This is very scary. Not the best day to walk to school."
Police cars were at nearly every intersection in the area, with helicopters circling overhead.
Butler University biology professor Richard Miller, 57, said university officials sent out an e-mail telling everyone on campus to stay where they are and not to go outside.
At International School of Indiana, adjacent to Hinkle Fieldhouse, teachers were at the front door peering out the window. They said, through the window, that the school was in lockdown and that the students were safe.
Jim Lehman, 45, from Carmel, was working on a garage at an investment property at the intersection of North Boulevard and 52nd Street near Butler when the shooting occurred. He said police told him to secure his house and to lock his back doors to make sure no intruders could get in. "It's a tough situation when an officer gets shot," he said. "What are you going to do?"
Read tomorrow's Indianapolis Star for more details about this story.
Star reporters Tom Spalding, Eunice Trotter, Vic Ryckaert and Theodore Kim contributed to this story.