Kaylon Rashaad Woods, a 38-year-old man from South Bend, was killed on Monday, April 27, 2026, after a shooting at The Highlands Apartments in Elkhart, Indiana. The call came in around 1:50 to 1:54 p.m., when dispatchers received reports of gunfire and injuries near Links Drive and Troon Court. When Elkhart police officers and first responders arrived at 2515 Links Drive, they found Woods inside an apartment with gunshot wounds.
A 30-year-old woman was found outside the apartment with an apparent gunshot wound and was taken to Elkhart General Hospital with serious injuries.
Medics tried to help Woods at the scene, but he was pronounced dead there. The Elkhart County Coroner later determined that Woods died from a gunshot wound and ruled his manner of death a homicide. The wounded woman survived and was reported to be recovering from serious injuries while the investigation continued.
Authorities identified the suspected shooter as Adonis Latroy Joseph, 41, of Elkhart. Investigators said Joseph was connected to the shooting and that, about 90 minutes after the apartment attack, Elkhart County and St. Joseph County SWAT teams went to a home in the 28000 block of Golden Pond Trail while trying to locate him. Around the same time, a fire was reported at that house. Fire crews extinguished the flames, and officers found a deceased person inside. The body was later identified as Joseph, who appeared to have a gunshot wound to the head. The coroner later ruled Joseph’s death a suicide caused by a gunshot wound.
No arrest was made in Woods’ killing because the identified suspect was found dead shortly after the shooting. The Elkhart County Prosecutor’s Office and Elkhart County Homicide Unit described the Links Drive shooting and the Golden Pond Trail death as connected investigations, and officials said there was no ongoing threat to the public. Authorities continued asking anyone with information to contact investigators.
Joseph had previously worked for the South Bend Police Department. He was hired in May 2011, but in December 2017, an internal affairs investigation into allegations involving him led to him being relieved of duty. He resigned from the department in January 2018. Online reports connected the violence to a domestic situation, saying Joseph was the former partner of the woman who was shot and that Woods was in a relationship with her, though authorities had not publicly released a full formal motive.
Woods was remembered across South Bend as far more than a victim of violence. He was a father of two, a yoga instructor, a former Ball State football player, a coach, a community builder, and someone family and friends described as calm, loving, and deeply present for others. His obituary said he was born in Charleston, South Carolina, to Ronnie Lee Woods and Belinda Gail Smith Woods, and that he left behind his children, Jaylon and Kenley Woods, along with his parents, sister, extended family, friends, students, and the communities he touched through yoga and mentorship.
In the days after his death, family members and community members gathered in South Bend to remember the way Woods lived. His uncle described him as observant and mature even as a child, and said his family proudly watched him grow into someone who earned a scholarship to Ball State University and built a life centered on fatherhood, movement, and service. Those close to him said being a father was the role he valued most, and that he wanted to spend his days doing yoga, working out, being with his children, and being a good dad.
His work as a yoga instructor became one of the strongest parts of his legacy. Woods hosted and created events such as Yoga and Mimosas, Tea and Yoga, Together in the Gardens, Yoga on the Gridiron, and Yoga for Social Justice, which was described as a healing and restful space for people fighting for social justice. Friends, students, and former teammates described him as quiet at first, but magnetic, energetic, and uplifting once people got to know him. A memorial gathering at Madison Oyster Bar in South Bend drew family, friends, former teammates, yoga students, and others who said Woods had made a lasting impact on their lives.
His death left two scenes behind: an apartment in Elkhart where he was killed and a burned home on Golden Pond Trail where the suspected shooter died. But those who loved Woods tried to keep the focus on the life he built before that day: a father proud of his children, a teacher who brought peace into rooms, and a man whose community said he made people feel seen, stronger, and more connected.
