In the early hours of a summer morning in Indianapolis, the life of Andre Phillips, a 34-year-old Black male, was tragically cut short. On June 16, 2016, police were called to the 3600 block of Celtic Drive, on the city's east side, where they discovered Phillips with a gunshot wound to his head. Despite the efforts of first responders, he succumbed to his injuries at the scene.
The investigation into the shooting moved swiftly.
Within hours of the incident, detectives with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department had identified a person of interest. Their inquiries led them to 19-year-old Charles Mitchell. After being questioned by homicide detectives, Mitchell was arrested and subsequently charged with the murder of Andre Phillips.
While an arrest was made promptly, the circumstances that led to the fatal shooting were not immediately made public by the authorities. The case was treated as a homicide from the outset, with investigators working to piece together the events of that morning. The arrest of a suspect brought a small measure of resolution to a community grappling with the violent loss of one of its members.
