On the evening of July 8, 2024, a violent confrontation unfolded at the Lawrence Landing apartment complex on the northeast side of Indianapolis, Indiana. Officers from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department were dispatched to the 6800 block of Faris Avenue, near the intersection of 42nd Street and Shadeland Avenue, following reports of a shooting. Upon arrival, first responders discovered 38-year-old Dartanian Lamonte Cole suffering from gunshot wounds.
He was transported to a local hospital in critical condition but succumbed to his injuries a short time later.
Witnesses at the scene and subsequent investigations revealed that the incident began as a verbal dispute near the complex's swimming pool. Dartanian Cole had been walking past a parked vehicle occupied by a man and two women when he allegedly muttered a comment, sparking an argument with one of the women. The situation escalated when the man in the vehicle, identified as 27-year-old Reggie Horton, exited the car and attempted to punch Cole. According to testimony provided to the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, when Cole reached for his backpack during the altercation, Horton drew a firearm and discharged it multiple times, striking Cole.
Reggie Horton fled the scene but was later identified by witnesses, including his own girlfriend who was present during the shooting. Authorities arrested Horton, who was already known to law enforcement as a serious violent felon. In November 2025, a jury convicted Horton of murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon after deliberating for less than an hour. On December 5, 2025, a judge sentenced Horton to 85 years in prison for the crime.
