Prosecutor: Officers will not be charged in July 2020 standoff, fatal shooting

Photos released by IMPD on July 19, 2020, show the damage from gunfire during a SWAT standoff that ended with one man dead on the east side. (Provided Photo/IMPD)

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) – No officers will be charged in a July 2020 standoff and fatal shooting after an extensive review, the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office announced Friday.

On July 18, 2020, around 11:43 p.m., Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers were called to the 3600 block of North Parker Avenue when a woman called police to report her nephew had a gun, was on the porch and was intoxicated at a home.

Two officers arrived at the home in full uniform and in marked vehicles, according to the department. Those officers then called for back-up. After that, officers said the man, identified as 35-year-old Grant King, shot at officers, and one officer returned fire. King retreated into the home at that point, and police said it was unclear whether he had been struck by the officer’s gunfire. No officers were injured, according to the summary.

Following the first exchange of gunfire, police set up a perimeter and SWAT arrived and began making announcements over a loud speaker in an attempt to contact the man. Negotiators spent about two hours talking to King by phone before he ceased all communication with them. At that point, SWAT and officers continued to try to get in touch with the man, then introduced chemical agents, the department said.

After the chemical agents were deployed, police feared King was injured and went into the home to find him. That’s when they say King and officers once again exchanged gunfire. King was struck, and medical personnel within the SWAT unit provided him with emergency medical care before he was taken to an area hospital, where he was pronounced dead, the summary said.

In all, five police officers fired their weapons during the incident. Gunfire from the man struck at least three nearby homes, including one where a 21-month-old child was sleeping with her grandmother. His gunfire also struck a nearby tree where officers had taken cover and later the shield of a SWAT officer, according to an incident summary.

The prosecutor’s office said a review of the officers’ actions during the standoff do not meet Indiana’s legal standard for filing criminal charges.