Indy man is charged with double murder following deadly shooting of toddler
Nov 18, 2024
INDIANAPOLIS -- An Indianapolis man is in jail facing two counts of murder following a shooting that left two people dead, including a 3-year-old toddler, on the northeast side of Indianapolis
Police arrested the accused killer following a traffic stop on Saturday along Sherman Drive.
Man, toddler shot to death on northeast side of Indianapolis
The shooting took place in late August when police were called to the parking lot of a shopping center near 75th and Shadeland and found two people shot inside a car. Officials with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Departmetn said at the time that 22-year-old Jaishawn Johnson died on scene.
Johnson's girlfriend's 3-year-old son Armonie Booker passed away after being rushed to a hospital on his 3rd birthday.
A few days later, more than 100 people gathered for a prayer vigil where the shooting happened.
The crowd of strangers, friends and family mourned the loss of an innocent young child.
“We losing our youth, our babies. He didn't have a chance. He never got to ride a school bus. This is just sickening,” said Booker’s great aunt Lakeisha Bowling.
A few weeks after the killing, prosecutors charged William Paschall-Young with two counts of murder, but the case remained sealed as police searched for the suspect, who was finally taken into custody over the weekend.
“It's just a terrible thing. So while I am pleased there is a person who will stand trial and be potentially held accountable for what he did to these two people, it doesn't bring them back and my heart hurts for that family,” said IMPD chief Chris Bailey.
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Court records show police spoke to multiple witnesses and recovered surveillance video of the accused killer leaving an adjacent liquor store just before the shooting, which also took place on the suspect's birthday.
The affidavit does not explain an exact motive for the violence, but whatever the cause the police chief cautions there's a long way to go before Booker’s family sees justice.
“This is the first step. I always tell people in justice, we have an arrest but that's not the finish line. The finish line is a conviction and accountability for the person alleged to have committed these acts,” said Bailey.
The suspect is now being held without bond pending trial.