In accordance with the Indiana Rules of Professional Conduct, the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney is releasing the following information to address the recent publicity and false information being disseminated relating to an Officer Involved Fatal Shooting in Elkhart County last week. To those members of our community that have refrained from engaging in spreading speculative information, your willingness to allow the investigative process into the victim’s death to proceed in a manner that protects the integrity and professionalism of a law enforcement investigation is truly respected and appreciated.
As was previously indicated, within a very short time after the shooting early Sunday morning, February 8, 2026, the Elkhart County Homicide Unit, a multi-jurisdictional investigative group of law enforcement officers that specializes in death investigations in Elkhart County, is investigating the event. The Homicide Unit utilizes numerous local, state, federal, public and private, experts as part of their investigative process as is necessary to complete their responsibilities. This process is currently underway and has been able to reliably corroborate several facts pertinent to the case. However, there are significant facts and items of evidence that are still awaiting forensic analysis that are absolutely necessary for the full determination of whether the shooting was justified under the law of Indiana.
Accordingly, the investigation is not complete, and the process must be protected to ensure all persons’ rights are respected and the investigation is not tainted any more than it already has been with false information that continues to spread in our community. The victim’s name will not be released by my Office as he was a minor at the time of his death which may be determined to be from a violent offense. Indiana Code § 35-40-1-1 and § 35-40-5-12 protect victims’ rights accordingly. The names of individuals involved in the shooting will not be released by my Office at this time, as I am aware of threats of violence and intimidating acts that are being made to officers, not even involved, as well as to the victim’s family. This is wholly inappropriate and reflects a depravity of human behavior that is completely unacceptable.
The victim’s family should be allowed to grieve with privacy and dignity after this terrible tragedy. After meeting with them and sharing some information, there are limited facts that have been reliably established and corroborated with objective information that may be disclosed at this time to correct the false information previously publicized and encourage public safety and peace.
Shortly after 1:30 a.m., on February 8, 2026, Officer 1 was driving past the area of High Dive Park pavilion and noticed a vehicle that was running while sitting stationary in the parking lot after the park was closed. Law enforcement officers often investigate concerns about a variety of possible criminal behaviors commonly discovered in such circumstances, as well as providing aid to people in need of immediate mental health and/or medical services.
Officer 1 pulled into the lot near the suspicious vehicle and observed several individuals inside, some appearing to be minors. Officer 1 called for backup. While Officer 1 was speaking to the driver, he made additional observations prompting further investigation pursuant to Indiana law. Officer 2 arrived to provide back-up while Officer 1 continued his work.
Officer 1 attempted to gather identifying information from each occupant of the vehicle, being led to believe that there were two individuals that were eighteen (18) and three individuals claiming to be juveniles, two males and one female. Officer 1 then returned to his vehicle to determine whether there were any law enforcement notifications relating to any of the occupants.
Upon removing the occupants of the vehicle, one by one to ensure safety and control, the eighteen (18) year old driver did not have any identification on him and advised “not right now” when asked if he had any weapons. As Officer 1 continued to remove the backseat passengers from the driver’s side of the vehicle, the front seat passenger, who had previously been complying with officer directives to keep hands visible, reached down between his legs and refused to put his hand up when ordered. The front passenger then turned, got out of the car on the passenger’s side, and fired a handgun.
Both Officer 1 and Officer 2 fired their respective handguns. The front passenger was fatally shot during this event. A handgun was on the ground near him.
In less than one-minute, additional officers began arriving. The other people from the subject car were secured and more responding officers approached the front passenger lying on the ground, who provided first aid until medics arrived. No other individual had approached the front passenger or inflicted any additional injury to him after he was shot.
The front passenger was transported to the hospital, where he was declared deceased.
During the crime scene investigation, in which crime scene specialists documented and recovered evidence related to the event, another handgun was found on the front passenger floorboard of the subject vehicle that had been modified to be fully automatic by what is known as a “switch”.
Although most primary interviews are now complete, investigators will continue to interview additional witnesses that may become relevant. Furthermore, as some of the witnesses originally interviewed were not forthcoming and/or fully truthful in their statements, additional interviews will continue.
A forensic autopsy was performed at the Homer Stryker School of Medicine, and the investigators are awaiting the official report to determine all injuries, toxicology, and the cause, manner, and mechanism of the passenger’s death. Typically, these reports take two (2) to six (6) months to complete.
In addition, forensic firearm and toolmark analysis is underway by an outside law enforcement agency to determine the functionality of the weapons involved and compare evidence from the scene to inform investigators as to which weapons were fired, or not, and if any conclusions can reasonably be drawn from that analysis.
Several audio/video recordings collected during the investigation will also be forensically evaluated to inform investigators as to the events that were recorded on these videos, the timing thereof after evaluating the frame rates, metadata, lighting effects, and audio capabilities and limitations of said recordings. These types of forensic evaluations also take months.
As indicated, the investigation is ongoing and numerous forensic evaluations and reports need to be completed before the matter is formally presented to the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for consideration and potential charges. When a charging decision is made, further information will be provided. At this time, no additional information will be provided, and no audio/video recordings will be released.
The City of Elkhart has shared numerous email and social media communications, as well as voicemail messages, that they have received, including threats of violence toward police in the community, and demonstrating a profound amount of bias and preconceived ideas. The number of individuals that have already articulated their conclusions about whether the shooting was justified or not, without having objectively credible information, is dangerous to the safety of our community as a whole.
As I have said before, and I will continue to say, a thorough and objective investigation is underway. Irresponsible social media postings, speculations, and assumptions are not evidence, nor should any reasonable person draw conclusions therefrom. Please continue to allow the investigative process to be completed without further taint and allow the victim’s family to grieve in a private and peaceful manner.
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“Under Indiana law, all persons arrested for a criminal offense are innocent
until proven guilty in a court of law.”