There have been numerous high-profile instances of police officers killing unarmed Black men and boys and getting away with it over the last handful of years. This phenomenon hit home in Indianapolis with the fatal shooting of 45-year-old Aaron Bailey, an unarmed Black man, by two Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officers. In May 2018, nearly a year after Bailey’s killing, a citizen review board said the officers didn’t violate department policies, and they kept their jobs.
Police chief Bryan Roach, who took the position in January 2017, didn’t believe the shooting was justified. He suspended Carlton Howard and Michael Dinnsen without pay and recommended their termination to the civilian merit board. Roach going against the grain of his own department was seen by Bailey’s family as a sign they could trust the process. But the board didn’t agree with Roach, voting 5-2 in support of the officers. After the hearing, Roach said he was disappointed by the decision but hoped the community would understand it.
Mayor Joe Hogsett issued a statement to voice his criticism of the decision and the board’s process in general.
“The fact that Chief Roach’s experienced, well-reasoned decision to terminate two officers has been overturned by the votes of five individuals highlights a merit board system that must be changed if we are to continue building bridges of trust between our brave police officers and the communities they proudly serve,” Hogsett said.
Nabeela Virjee, a former city attorney, resigned after the board’s decision amid criticism that she and other attorneys didn’t present a strong enough case for the department to fire Howard and Dinnsen.
In June 2018, Bailey’s family received $650,000 to settle its civil court case against the city of Indianapolis. The settlement also included an agreement by the city to continue training IMPD officers how to lessen confrontations and that Roach would visit the family within 30 days.
In the early morning hours on June 29, 2017, IMPD officers Dinnsen and Howard pulled Bailey over near Burdsal Parkway and East Riverside Drive. The officers said Bailey took off in his car about 10 minutes into the stop and crashed into a tree near 23rd and Aqueduct Streets. Dinnsen and Howard approached his car and fired shots, saying they thought Bailey was going for a weapon, but no weapon was found. Citing an autopsy report, Bailey’s family said the officers fired 12 shots and hit Bailey four times in the back.
Bailey’s death shook and divided Indianapolis. There were rallies and community meetings calling for justice, and Roach said the department would show more transparency.
In his May 2018 column for the Recorder, Abdul-Hakim Shabazz said Bailey was to blame for his death, not IMPD.
“[E]verything Bailey did that evening was a contributing factor to his own demise,” Shabazz wrote, “and there were numerous points that night last summer, that had he did one thing differently he might still be alive today.”
Before the merit board made its decision, special prosecutor Kenneth Cotter determined in October 2017 the IMPD officers shouldn’t face charges because they reasonably feared for their lives. According to a 16-page report Cotter released, Bailey didn’t cooperate during the traffic stop, he was unusually nervous, and he reached into the center console after the crash while ignoring commands, among other things.
Contact staff writer Tyler Fenwick at 317-762-7853. Follow him on Twitter @Ty_Fenwick.
Aaron Bailey
