Indianapolis Grand Jury Declines To Charge Police Officer Who Killed Dreasjon Reed

On Tuesday, an Indianapolis grand jury decided to not bring charges against an Indianapolis police officer who shot and killed a 21-year-old Black man, Dreasjon “Sean” Reed, after chasing him down after a high-speed chase, according to ABC News.

Dejoure Mercer, who is also Black, is the Indianapolis Metropolitan police officer who shot and killed Reed on May 6 after chasing him down on foot after a car chase. Reed had been speeding excessively when Mercer was in pursuit of him. When Mercer caught up to Reed and shot him, as Reed lay there dying, another police officer could be heard laughing at Reed while blurting out, “Looks like it’s going to be a closed casket, homie,” as Reed was recording the incident on Facebook Live.

A special prosecutor, Rosemary Khoury, was appointed to oversee the investigation into Reed’s fatal shooting.

“Fairness. From day one that’s been my goal,” Khoury told reporters Tuesday. “No one wins here. I hope that anyone who was a part of this entire process can look at this and feel comfortable that the investigation was done in an impartial manner. That’s exactly what my team and I did over the past five months.”

According to Fox59, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) released this statement:

“We are grateful to Prosecutor Khoury, Indiana State Police Superintendent Carter, and all the troopers who participated in this investigation, as well as the citizens who served on the grand jury for ensuring a fair and just investigative process and a transparent outcome.

“We also extend our thanks to Indianapolis residents for awaiting the conclusion of this lengthy and intensive process alongside us. We understand that this result may be frustrating for some of our residents, but it is our hope that the full transparency offered by Prosecutor Khoury and Superintendent Carter will help to move our city forward, improve the relationship between our officers and neighborhoods, and bring us closer to healing the division in our community. We look forward to continuing a productive dialogue with our residents and building the types of partnerships with our neighborhoods that prevent violence.”