On September 26, 2015, a tragedy unfolded at a residence on Linwood Avenue in Evansville, Indiana, claiming the life of Diamante Dashae Killebrew. The 18-year-old Black male was visiting the home when the quiet evening was shattered by the sudden discharge of a firearm. Unbeknownst to Killebrew, who was situated in one room of the house, a firearm was being handled in an adjacent room, leading to a fatal sequence of events that would devastate his family and the local community.
The
investigation conducted by the Evansville Police Department revealed that a 15-year-old boy was in the neighboring room handling a handgun. Authorities determined that the juvenile was manipulating the weapon in a reckless manner when it accidentally discharged. The bullet pierced through the wall separating the two rooms and struck Killebrew in the chest. Emergency responders were called to the scene, and Killebrew was transported to a local hospital for treatment, but he succumbed to his injuries later that day.
Following the shooting, law enforcement focused their attention on the 15-year-old involved in the incident. Due to his age, the suspect's name was not publicly released by officials. However, the youth was taken into custody and placed in a state Youth Care Center. Prosecutors filed formal charges against the teenager, including involuntary manslaughter and possession of a handgun by a minor, citing the reckless nature of his actions that resulted in the loss of life.
The death of Killebrew left a profound void for his parents, Ebony Fox and Robert Killebrew, Sr., as well as his multiple siblings and extended family. The incident was marked by investigators not as a malicious act of murder, but as a preventable homicide resulting from negligence with a deadly weapon. The case concluded with the juvenile facing the legal consequences of the shooting in the juvenile justice system, closing the immediate investigation into the heartbreaking occurrence on Linwood Avenue.
