In the summer of 2015, a wave of violence gripped the city of Gary, Indiana. On the morning of August 6th, the residents of the 1100 block of Lane Street were jolted by the sound of gunfire. When police arrived at the scene shortly before noon, they discovered a grim tableau. In the front yard of a home lay the body of a young man, and upon entering the residence for safety reasons, they found another deceased male inside. The victims were identified as 17-year-old Raymond Washington-Whitehead of Merrillville and his 18-year-old friend, James Powell of Gary. Both had been fatally shot in what investigators quickly determined to be a double homicide.
The deaths of Raymond and James marked the sixth and seventh murders in Gary in a span of just seven days, sending a shockwave of fear and grief through the community. Family members of the two teenagers were left devastated, trying to comprehend the sudden and violent loss of two young lives that were just on the cusp of adulthood. The Lake County/Gary Metro Homicide Unit immediately launched an intensive investigation to piece together the events that led to the tragic shooting and to bring those responsible to justice.
Within days, the investigation pointed to a primary suspect. Authorities identified 22-year-old Shelton Curtis as the man they believed was responsible for the deaths of Raymond Washington-Whitehead and James Powell. A warrant was issued for his arrest on two counts of murder, and he was publicly declared armed and dangerous. The search for Curtis culminated in his surrender to the police. In connection with the double homicide, another man, 22-year-old Kevin Blackmon, was also taken into custody and faced a charge of assisting a criminal. The arrests brought a small measure of relief to a community shaken by the senseless violence that had claimed the lives of two of its young members.
