A 17-year-old and an 18-year-old are facing preliminary felony charges after officers responding to a crowded Halloween party on Indianapolis’ southeast side heard gunfire and later found them trying to climb into a car with a loaded handgun. The chaos unfolded shortly after 9 p.m. Saturday in the 7000 block of Myra Way, where police say a night of underage drinking turned into a scene with shell casings on the ground and ammunition in a getaway vehicle.
Underage Drinking Call Turns Into Gunfire Investigation
According to Fox 59, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers were originally sent to Myra Way after multiple reports of underage drinking at a large gathering. While they were on scene, officers overheard gunfire nearby and then observed several shell casings scattered in the area, the station reports.
Investigators determined that two people had recently left the party and were attempting to get into a vehicle to leave when officers caught up with them, per the same account. Police detained the pair without incident, and a passenger in the vehicle reportedly had a handgun equipped with a high-capacity magazine. Detectives determined that ammunition recovered matched the caliber of the shell casings found near the party, the report notes.
Guns, Vapes and Mushrooms Seized From the Scene
Police ultimately seized two handguns, several live rounds of ammunition, more than 300 boxes of THC vapes and nearly 10 grams of psilocybin mushrooms, according to the Fox 59 report. Both the 17-year-old and the 18-year-old were placed under arrest on preliminary charges of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon, along with preliminary charges of possessing marijuana and a narcotic drug.
Under Indiana law, criminal recklessness becomes a Level 6 felony when it is committed while armed with a deadly weapon, according to the Indiana General Assembly. Neither teen has been publicly identified, and it remains unclear how many shots were fired or whether anyone was hurt at the scene.
Part of a Violent Halloween Weekend Nationwide
The Myra Way incident was one of many violent flashpoints tied to Halloween weekend celebrations across the country. At least 15 people were killed and dozens more injured in shootings across 11 states over the holiday weekend, with several incidents occurring near festivities, college campuses and nightlife districts, as reported by USA Today.
Closer to home, seven people were injured in a shooting near the Indiana University Bloomington campus early Sunday, and an 18-year-old was arrested there on charges of resisting law enforcement and unlawful possession of a firearm, the outlet reports.
A City Already Tracking Fewer Shooting Victims
The Myra Way arrests come even as Indianapolis has posted a longer-term decline in nonfatal shootings. IMPD has reported more than 214 people shot and wounded across 185 nonfatal shootings in the city this year, though Fox 59 notes that figure reflects roughly 131 fewer victims than the prior year, a 38% year-over-year drop.
Those numbers continue a five-year downward trend dating back to 2022, when nearly 500 victims had been recorded by the same point in the year, per the earlier Fox 59 report. The department has also pointed to a 40% clearance rate for nonfatal shootings, well above the roughly 25% national average cited in that report. Investigators have not released further details on what charges, if any, will ultimately be filed against the two teens arrested on Myra Way.
