Madeline Buckley

madeline.buckley@indystar.com

The courtroom was filled to capacity, the crowd overflowing into the hallway, with police officers and loved ones of Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Officer Perry Renn.

It was a showing of solidarity for the fallen officer, shot and killed in the line of duty in July 2014. They came to see his killer punished.

Marion Superior Judge Marc Rothenberg on Thursday sentenced Major Davis Jr., 27, to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

It was a moment of closure for those who watched the case stall several times in the past three years, first for a midcase appeal filed by Davis without his attorneys' approval and then because Davis was declared incompetent to stand trial and was ordered to receive mental health treatment.

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But months after a judge decided Davis was well enough for trial to proceed, he pleaded guilty this past week to murder in an agreement that spared his life. He originally faced the death penalty for killing Renn, a 22-year IMPD veteran, in a 2014 gun battle on the city's east side.

Before joining IMPD, Renn had served in the military for 10 years, his wife Lynn Renn testified at the sentencing hearing. Lynn and Perry Renn first met in the Army, she said.

"Perry was my best friend, confidante and the love of my life," his wife said. "We had 26 years together, exactly half of his life."

Her husband was beginning to dream of retirement, she said, a retirement that he hoped would come with no injuries and never having to fire his service weapon.

He was raised by a single mother, Phyllis Renn, who noted that her son loved animals and felt called to service, first for his country, and then for his Indianapolis community.

"You lost your life, too," Phyllis Renn told Davis. "But it was returned to you."

Renn's last call was to the area of East 34th Street and Forest Manor Avenue, where he encountered Davis brandishing an assault rifle. Davis refused to put the gun down, police said.

"Perry died protecting some of the very people in this room," said Fraternal Order of Police President Rick Snyder.

After the sentencing, IMPD Chief Bryan Roach addressed the crowds of police officers who came to the hearing. He said the officers lost a member of their family.

"These are hard times," Roach said to the officers, choking up. "Please be safe."

Call IndyStar reporter Madeline Buckley at (317) 444-6083. Follow her on Twitter: @Mabuckley88.