INDIANAPOLIS -- An Indianapolis man has been charged with reckless homicide following a deadly shooting earlier this year on the near north side of Indianapolis.
IMPD officials said 41-year-old Ladrelle Bryant was arrested on Tuesday in the shooting death of 44-year-old Alfred Wombles.
Officers with IMPD's north district responded to the 3300 block of N. Kenwood Avenue on a report of a person shot on the morning of Jan. 18. When officers arrived, they located a man later identified as Wombles with a reported gunshot wounds. Wombles died after being taken to the hospital.
Court records show Bryant called 911 on himself and was detained at the scene. He was later released pending further investigation.
Police claim the victim walked up to the threshold of Bryant's detached garage but didn't enter the building when he was shot and killed.
"It's been devastating. It's been sad. It's traumatizing," said the victim's sister Charlotte Wombles.
Charlotte Wombles said she believes there was no reason to kill her brother, because at the time of the shooting the victim wasn't armed and only had a screwdriver in his pocket.
"People walk up to me all the time Do I have a right to shoot them? No," she said. "You can't just shoot somebody and an unarmed person at that."
According to the affidavit, Bryant told police, "I didn’t know if he was going to rob me or break in. I was trying to shoot a warning shot to scare him away. I wasn’t trying to hit, kill that dude. I fired one shot”
Prosecutors claim surveillance video of the shooting in the alley was captured from a nearby business, resulting in the charge of reckless homicide.
"Murder has intent, whereas with reckless homicide, you just have to show the actions were reckless," said attorney Mario Massillamany.
Massillamany isn't connected to the case, but said if it goes before a jury, reckless homicide carries much a lower burden of proof than murder. Indiana law also allows a lot of latitude for people to protect their home.
"If you don't charge him with reckless and you go with murder, there's a chance a jury find him not guilty and then you get nothing," said Massillamany.
Because of the lower burden of proof, Massillamany believes it should be easier for prosecutors to convict Bryant of reckless homicide than it would be murder.
"In Indiana, you have to show intent and if the prosecutors can’t prove intent to a jury of twelve people then the guy would get to walk," said Massillamany. "For the family, I think long term being able to get a conviction and hold him accountable is better than getting nothing."
Despite the legal rational, the Wombles family remains disappointed Bryant is not charged with murder.
"The justice system failed us, me and my family," said Charlotte. "I feel like it's not justice to me."
The suspect turned himself in on a warrant and was booked into the Marion County Jail on Tuesday. After posting a $15,000 surety bond, Bryant was released later the same day.
Prosecutors declined to comment on the charges. The suspect, who has returned home, also said he was not able to talk about the case.