In the early morning hours of June 23, 2022, 34-year-old Vincent Crutcher was on his way to work in the Buechel neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky, when he was shot on Heatherview Road near Breckenridge Lane. Emergency services responded to the scene just before 4:30 a.m. and transported Crutcher to the hospital in critical condition. Despite medical efforts, he succumbed to his injuries the following day, June 24, 2022.
Crutcher was a celebrated local basketball figure, having been a
star player at Pleasure Ridge Park High School, where he graduated in 2006. During his senior year, he was a finalist for Mr. Basketball in Kentucky and went on to play college basketball at two universities in the state. His former coach remembered him as the only player in the Sixth Region to have started on three regional championship teams. Friends and family recalled him as a much better person than he was a basketball player, a smiling and wonderful father.
The investigation into Crutcher's death led to the arrest of two suspects. Shortly after the shooting, Louisville Metro Police apprehended 21-year-old Charvontae Reed. Reed was initially charged with first-degree assault and second-degree battery, to which he pleaded not guilty. His charges were later upgraded to include complicity to murder and weapons charges.
In February 2024, a second suspect, 20-year-old Jeremiah Banks, was arrested and charged with murder and robbery in connection with Crutcher's death. Banks was taken into custody on South 18th Street in Louisville and is being held at the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections.
