Shanton L. Carprue Jr., a 23-year-old Black male, tragically lost his life on a Tuesday afternoon in the fall of 2015. The day of his death, September 29, began with a sense of foreboding for his mother. She had noticed a dark-colored car with tinted windows and a distinguishing missing piece of chrome lingering near their home. She recognized the vehicle as one belonging to a person with whom her son had been having trouble, a silent prelude to the violence that would soon unfold.
Later
that day, the unease materialized into reality when police in East Chicago, Indiana, began receiving multiple 911 calls. The callers all reported the sound of gunshots erupting in the vicinity of 141st and Grace streets. Witnesses to the event described seeing a dark blue Buick speeding away from the area. The driver's face was obscured by a red, black, and gray mask, adding a layer of anonymity to the brazen daylight shooting. When authorities arrived at the scene, they discovered Shanton Carprue in the front seat of a dark-colored, four-door vehicle. He had been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene.
The investigation into the homicide led police to identify 21-year-old Tavontae Allen of East Chicago as the primary suspect. Allen was subsequently charged with the murder of Carprue. During legal proceedings, his attorney contested the identification of Allen as the shooter. It was revealed that Allen was not a stranger to law enforcement, having a prior history that included charges for criminal recklessness and carrying a handgun without a license stemming from a separate shooting incident just a few months earlier.
While awaiting trial for the murder of Shanton Carprue, Tavontae Allen was released on bond. The case, however, would never reach a conclusion in a courtroom. On August 1, 2017, Allen died after suffering a severe asthma attack. His attorney stated that the attack occurred after Allen had been playing paintball on a hot day and tried to cool down in front of an air conditioner upon returning home, a sudden end that left the quest for justice in Carprue's death unresolved.
