20-year-old man on probation for drug dealing arrested for shootout at MLK Park
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Criminal charges were filed Monday against a man for a shootout at a popular Indianapolis park.
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20-year-old Xavier White was on probation for dealing marijuana when the shooting happened.
According to police, there were more than 40 rounds fired. Several of the bullets hit a nearby home, whose residents were present inside.
“It’s a little nerve-wracking, to be honest. Then to be a mom myself, it puts me on edge a little bit,” Ciara Patterson, an Indianapolis resident, said.
Court papers say on May 30, White arrived at MLK Park’s basketball court to meet with several other men.
According to investigators, about an hour after they arrived, a black Dodge Challenger approached the group and spoke with someone on the court.
After conversation ended, the driver reached the corner of 19th and Park Avenue, and someone in the vehicle fired several shots toward the group.
The group on the court then returned fire. No one was injured.
Police say by the time they arrived, everyone was gone, and had left behind over 40 shell casings.
Officers say using video from the homeowner, they traced one of the vehicles to White’s home where he was arrested.
At the home, they also found a gun and 44 grams of marijuana. White was not allowed to own a gun, as it violated his probation.
According to court documents, White told investigators he was at the park, but did not fire any shots at the black Dodge.
Police believe it was a targeted shooting, but have not identified who the target was.
This shooting has made people in the community near the park feel uneasy.
“There’s a lot of kids in this area. Of course, there’s a school in the back, the playground, and there’s a lot of families who walk their kids and their dogs,” Patterson said.
Gina Mooers, another resident near the park, says the entire situation is saddening.
“It makes me really sad that we’re having to worry about these kids getting a hold of these guns and just making horrible decisions and the shooting is just really sad,” Gina Mooers, an Indianapolis resident, said.
White faces two counts of criminal recklessness, one count of dealing in marijuana, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was being held at the Marion County jail without bond.
White was due in court Monday morning for an initial hearing, and a jury trial was scheduled for July 27.
Investigators say they are still trying to identify other people involved.
