A pre-dawn shooting in Kokomo left an 18-year-old man shot multiple times in the chest and a 16-year-old boy with gunshot wounds, and police say both injuries are connected to a stolen car crash just blocks away. A 17-year-old now faces preliminary charges after officers linked him to the crashed vehicle, though the Howard County Prosecutor's Office had not filed formal charges as of the latest report.
According to fox59.com, officers were called to the 700 block of West Virginia Avenue around 4:42 a.m. Thursday to investigate a shooting, though wthr.com reported the shooting was called in closer to 4:45 a.m. When officers arrived, they located the 18-year-old who had been shot in the chest multiple times at that address.
Less than half a mile away, in the 1100 block of South Courtland Avenue, officers found a crashed 2007 Pontiac Vibe. Police located a 16-year-old male at that scene who was suffering from apparent gunshot wounds, the station's report states. Investigators determined the car had also been reported stolen.
Two Teens, Two Very Different Conditions
The 16-year-old was taken to Ascension St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis, where he remains in critical condition, per Kokomo police. The 18-year-old, meanwhile, has since been released from the hospital and was believed to be in stable condition, the same account notes.
Police say the driver of the crashed Vibe was a 17-year-old male, and that officers recovered multiple firearms that had previously been reported stolen during the investigation. Investigators deduced that the crash and the shooting were related incidents, though the department has not released further detail on exactly how the two scenes connect.
Preliminary Charges Filed Against the Teen Driver
The 17-year-old has been preliminarily charged with auto theft with a prior conviction, a Level 5 felony; dangerous possession of a firearm by a child, a Class A misdemeanor; and never obtaining a valid driver's license, a Class C misdemeanor. The Howard County Prosecutor's Office has not filed formal charges against the teen yet, per the same account.
Indiana's statute on dangerous possession of a firearm by a child, found in Indiana Code Chapter 35-47-10, holds that a child who knowingly, intentionally, or recklessly possesses a firearm outside a specified exception commits the offense — the charge now listed against the teen driver in this case.
Investigation Remains Active
Police are still actively investigating Thursday morning's shooting and crash, and the connection between the two scenes has not been fully detailed publicly. The identities of the 17-year-old driver and both shooting victims have not been released.
