2010 Area Crime

[Happy Mom]

Man arrested after South Bend knife fight over car
Tribune Staff Report

SOUTH BEND — A fight over who got to drive a car resulted in a woman being taken to the hospital and a man to jail.

Police say the fight occurred Tuesday night in the 900 block of West Colfax, after the couple — reported to be boyfriend and girlfriend — got into an argument about the car.

The 21-year-old woman told police she didn't want the 42-year-old man to drive the car, so she sent her nephew into the house for a kitchen knife so she could slash the tires.

When the nephew came outside with the knife, the woman said, her boyfriend grabbed the knife and used it to attack her, cutting her twice on the arm.

The woman was driven to a local hospital, where police were contacted.

Police later found the man involved in a fight near the corner of Lincoln Way West and Cleveland Avenue, where he was arrested and taken to the county jail.
http://www.sbtinfo.com/article/20100721 ... /1036/News

[Happy Mom]

Teenager dead in South Bend shooting
Police say victim testified in recent murder trial.

By MARY KATE MALONE
Tribune Staff Writer

This story was originally posted at 1:10 p.m. July 21, 2010.
A 17-year-old South Bend teen was found dead in his mobile home at Countryside Village on Mayflower Road late Wednesday, police said.

People at the scene who said they knew the victim said that he had testified in a murder trial last week.

The teen’s body was found around 10 p.m. by a family member, according to police.

Click here to find out more!
Police said he had been dead for at least a couple of hours. The county’s Metro Homicide Unit is investigating.

Police did not confirm that it was a homicide; however, police said there were clear signs that several shots were fired.

The mobile home community is located at 1001 S. Mayflower Road.

The victim reportedly witnessed a shooting in South Bend late last year and recently testified for the state.

“I don’t know what their problem is,” said Cindy Jones, who said she was the victim’s “auntie.”

“Life is too short. If these youngsters don’t get themselves together, we are going to have a lot of this.”
http://www.sbtinfo.com/article/20100721 ... /1129/News

[Buck Wheat]

Teenager dead in South Bend shooting
Police say victim testified in recent murder trial.

By MARY KATE MALONE
Tribune Staff Writer

This story was originally posted at 1:10 p.m. July 21, 2010.
A 17-year-old South Bend teen was found dead in his mobile home at Countryside Village on Mayflower Road late Wednesday, police said.

People at the scene who said they knew the victim said that he had testified in a murder trial last week.

The teen’s body was found around 10 p.m. by a family member, according to police.

Click here to find out more!
Police said he had been dead for at least a couple of hours. The county’s Metro Homicide Unit is investigating.

Police did not confirm that it was a homicide; however, police said there were clear signs that several shots were fired.

The mobile home community is located at 1001 S. Mayflower Road.

The victim reportedly witnessed a shooting in South Bend late last year and recently testified for the state.

“I don’t know what their problem is,” said Cindy Jones, who said she was the victim’s “auntie.”

“Life is too short. If these youngsters don’t get themselves together, we are going to have a lot of this.”
http://www.sbtinfo.com/article/20100721 ... /1129/News

Such a shame. A young, promising life snuffed out in an instant. Lil B ( http://www.myspace.com/bernardvaughn ) was mature beyond his 17 years. Living alone independently. And he must have had a high-paying job too by the looks of the wad he is flashing.

[Happy Mom]

CRIME & COURTS

Police: Teenager hurts grandmother

MISHAWAKA — Police say a grandmother was taken to the hospital Wednesday after she was bitten by her 18-year-old granddaughter.

According to police reports, the fight took place in the 200 block of West Eighth Street after the grandmother refused to let her granddaughter into the home because of an earlier fight.

The 53-year-old grandmother told police her granddaughter attacked her and knocked her to the ground, where she was kicked and hit several times. She said her granddaughter then jumped on top of her, biting her ear and both of her breasts, leaving bite marks.

The woman's husband was able to pull the granddaughter off her, and police arrived to find the woman bleeding from several cuts on her head. The woman later complained of pain in her back and was taken to a local hospital.

Because the 18-year-old has a history of mental health issues, police didn't arrest her but had her temporarily committed to Madison Center for observation.

Police: Teen offers modern-day excuse

MISHAWAKA — A man caught trespassing inside a woman's garage tried to give police a 21st-century excuse: He was looking for better cell phone reception.

Police arrested an 18-year-old Mishawaka man Wednesday morning after a neighbor found him standing in a garage in the 900 block of North Liberty Street.

The neighbor told police he noticed the 18-year-old man standing outside the open garage door and looking around before entering the garage, which is attached to the house. The neighbor thought it was weird because the house belonged to a 91-year-old woman who was busy working in the yard on the other side of the house.

The neighbor called police and detained the 18-year-old. Officers arrived and questioned the teen. Police quoted the teen as saying he went into the garage because he was "looking for better reception on his phone."

Police arrested the teen, accusing him of home invasion and trespassing, and took him to the St. Joseph County Jail.

Armed men rob video game store

SOUTH BEND — Police say two men, one armed with a gun, robbed a video game store Wednesday night, making off with cash, video games and gaming systems.

The GameStop, 1290 E. Ireland Road, was robbed just after 9 p.m., police reported. The store clerk told police two men entered the store and one showed a gun. They demanded cash from the register and then took several games and at least two game systems before running out the door.

Police searched the area but were unable to find the burglars.

http://www.southbendtribune.com/article ... 01/7230318

[Happy Mom]

CRIME & COURTS

Man beaten in fight over woman

SOUTH BEND — A 26-year-old South Bend man told police he was assaulted by three men during a fight over a woman, according to a police report.

Police found the man in the 100 block of Maple Street around 2:30 a.m. Friday with cuts on his face. His shirt was ripped down the middle and his jeans were lying in the grass.

He was taken to Memorial Hospital for his injuries. Police did not find his assailants.
http://www.southbendtribune.com/article ... 01/7240311

[Happy Mom]

South Bend Police searching for GameStop robbery suspects
South Bend, Ind.,
Around 6:15 Sunday night, two men walked into game stop on S.R. 933.
Reporter: Jeff Blevins
Email Address: jeff.blevins@wndu.com



Police aren't playing games with two men who robbed a GameStop in South Bend on Sunday.

Around 6:15 Sunday night, two men walked into game stop on S.R. 933. The men pulled out a gun, demanded money, and duct-taped two store employees' hands and legs together.

After stealing some cash, the suspects left the store in a dark, four-door car going south on 933.

Anyone with information about the robbery should call Crime Stoppers at 288-STOP.
http://www.wndu.com/hometop/headlines/99344749.html

[Happy Mom]

South Bend man, just out of jail, faces more charges
Hogan accused of running red light, driving without license.

By ALICIA GALLEGOS
Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND — After being out of jail only a month, a man accused of carjacking several Holy Cross College students is now charged with another crime.

Rashaad Hogan, 19, was charged Tuesday with felony resisting law enforcement and misdemeanor operating never licensed, stemming from a Saturday arrest.

Despite the still-pending multi-count carjacking case, Hogan was allowed out of jail in June because of a trial rule requiring that defendants be released from custody if they have not faced trial in six months. Hogan is set for trial in September in the September 2009 carjacking/robbery case.

Click here to find out more!
His latest charge makes a total of three pending cases against Hogan.

In April 2009 Hogan pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property, admitting he stole the backpack of a woman walking along Notre Dame Avenue.

He was sentenced in that case by St. Joseph Superior Court Judge John Marnocha to a one-year suspended sentence and one year of probation.

Then in September, Hogan and four other teenagers are accused of robbing two students in the parking lot of the Notre Dame Apartments, forcing them into a car trunk and driving to two ATMs where they used the victims' PIN number to withdraw more cash.

The teens face five felonies in the incident, including carjacking, criminal confinement and robbery.

The state also filed a petition to revoke Hogan's probation in the theft case. That case is slated for a hearing Aug. 30.

Hogan had been in custody for the carjacking case until June 18 when he was released due to a trial delay.

According to Indiana trial rules, no defendant can be detained in jail on a charge, without a trial, for a period of more than six months from the date of the criminal charge, unless the delay is initiated by the defense or results from a congested court calendar.

In Hogan's case, the state requested the postponement, citing DNA tests that had yet to be completed by the Indiana State Police lab and two trial witnesses who could not be available for the scheduled May trial date.

Hogan's defense attorney objected to the delay, but it was granted.

Hogan was arrested Saturday, after being spotted by police allegedly driving and running a red light, according to charging documents. When an officer activated his siren, Hogan did not slow down and instead traveled through several more intersections. He was eventually impeded by traffic, according to documents, and stopped by squad cars.

Bureau of Motor Vehicle records show Hogan has never had a license.

Because of his prior criminal history and pending cases, the state requested Hogan's bond be set at $10,000.

According to jail records, Hogan is currently in the St. Joseph County Jail on $1,000 bond.

Staff writer Alicia Gallegos:
agallegos@sbtinfo.com
(574) 235-6368
http://www.sbtinfo.com/article/20100728/News01/7280312

[Happy Mom]

Police: Indiana boy fired shot that killed 3-year-old


INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — A 4-year-old Indianapolis boy picked up a gun left lying on a kitchen table and fired a shot that killed the 3-year-old daughter of his father's girlfriend, police said Friday.
After finding the gun, the boy pointed the loaded .45-caliber handgun at Aunesti Lee Allen's head before firing, Lt. Jeff Duhamell of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department said.

Police said the girl's mother, Fiona C. Lee, 26, was home at the time of the shooting Thursday. She was arrested on charges of child neglect and drug charges after officers found cocaine and marijuana in the home. She was being held Friday at the Marion County Jail.


Friends and relatives gathered Friday afternoon outside the home, a duplex in a working class neighborhood on the near west side of the city. They brought stuffed animals and flowers for an impromptu memorial that also included candles and a white ceramic angel with an inscription in ink, "She is in the arms of angels."

"I knew the little girl. I cried," said John Dodd, a friend of the family, who knew the victim and her siblings. "They were playful. I'd give them some spending change," Dodd said.

Duhamell said the 4-year-old boy was the son of Lee's live-in boyfriend, and relatives said the two had been in a relationship for about a year. He said it was not clear who the gun belonged to.

The boyfriend has a record for a handgun offense and cocaine charge, the police spokesman said. Lee also has a record, Duhamell said, but he did not know the details. Neither turned up in a search of the Indiana Department of Correction's online offender database.


http://www.sbtinfo.com/article/20100730 ... &updates=1

[Kingsman]

Neighbors reported that the couple was reserved but friendly, often waving as they left for work. Their lawn was cared for and no large appliances were kept on the front porch. Surprised to learn the details of the couple's past, neighbors, on a more positive note, said the couple was for ObamaCare and ending the Bush tax cuts--though they had reservations regarding financial reform. MSNBC

[Happy Mom]

Multiple armed robberies in South Bend
Two armed robberies in South Bend early this morning may have been by the same suspect based on matching descriptions according to police.
Posted: 7:43 AM Jul 31, 2010
Email Address: jeff.kew@wndu.com



The first robbery happening at the Walgreens on North Ironwood Drive near Edison. Then, shortly after that, just before 5 a.m. the suspect robbed the Speedway gas station near the intersection of Ireland and Miami.

In both cases the robber displayed a gun. Police are describing him as a black male wearing baggy clothes and an afro wig.
http://www.wndu.com/localnews/headlines/99683329.html
And they go after College Students....