Neighbor fires at man fleeing police; 11-year-old hurt

Police on June 28, 2019, were investigating an 11-year-old girl who was shot when a person living nearby fired at a suspect fleeing police. (WISH Photo/Alex Elkins)

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — An 11-year-old girl was injured Friday night when a neighbor tried to shoot at a man fleeing police on the city’s near northwest side.

Officers with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department pulled over a vehicle on Barnes Avenue at Eugene Street as part of a traffic stop around 7 p.m. Friday.

11 Y/O SHOT: a bullet intended for a fleeing suspect ended up hitting an 11y/o girl. She suffered “minor” injuries. It happened after a man fled the scene of a traffic stop and tried to get into a home on 29th street. The homeowner shot towards the intruder. pic.twitter.com/amRyRaXUWs — Sierra Hignite (@SierraHigniteTV) June 29, 2019

One of the passengers in that vehicle ran from police, going between homes and even running through a house, IMPD Capt. Dulin Nelson said at the scene. A neighbor saw the person fleeing police exit that house — and thinking the house was being robbed — fired a shot but missed, instead striking a house across the street. An 11-year-old girl in that house was hit.

The girl was taken to IU Health Riley Hospital for Children with a gunshot wound and was stable on Friday night, Nelson said.

The person who fled police was ultimately caught, according to Nelson. The two other people from the vehicle were detained, and police on Friday night were questioning the neighbor who fired the shot.