On a Saturday night, September 29, 2017, James Butler, a 22-year-old male, was shot and killed on West 28th Street, just west of Interstate 65 in Indianapolis. The incident unfolded after a dice game at a house where Butler was reportedly carrying a significant amount of money.
Investigators identified 17-year-old Dewayne Harris as the suspect.
Evidence from a GPS monitoring device, which Harris was required to wear for a separate criminal case in Jackson County, placed him at the location of the shooting at the time of the murder. It is believed that Harris shot Butler multiple times after learning about the money he was carrying. Following the shooting, Harris was tracked down in Jackson County and transported back to Indianapolis, where he was arrested.
In October 2019, Dewayne Harris, then 19, was sentenced for the murder of James Butler. He received a 55-year sentence for the murder charge, with an additional 20 years for a felony firearm use sentencing enhancement, totaling 75 years in prison.
In the wake of the tragedy, James Butler's mother, Samantha Butler, joined a protest led by the Ten Point Coalition near the scene of her son's death, calling for justice. A cousin, Shawnisha Lewis, remembered James as a 'very joyful person' who 'always brought a smile to someone's face... He was almost like a brother to me.'
