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This story has been updated. It was originally published on Dec. 1.
An Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer shot and killed a man on the city’s southwest side on Nov. 30 during an apparent hostage situation.
The Marion County Coroner’s Office identified the man as 60-year-old Lamont Bland. IMPD identifed the officer as Lt. Brandon Mills, a 26-year veteran with the department. Mills has been placed on adminstrative leave, which is standard procedure.
According to IMPD, officers responded to the 4900 block of Knights Way for a welfare check. Police said the person who called 911 said they could hear a call for help from a woman inside a white semi truck in the parking lot.
When officers arrived at the scene, a witness directed them to the truck, police said. Officers approached the vehicle and knocked on the door. Police said officers saw Bland appear from behind a curtain, which separated the driving and sleeping areas of the cabin. Bland then closed the curtain and repeatedly went between the two compartments.
An officer heard a call for help coming from the cabin, police said. Officers broke the driver’s side window to open the door. According to police, officers made verbal contact with Bland, who said, “I’m going to kill her,” “I got a knife to her throat,” and “You’re gonna die.” Officers also heard a female voice call for help from inside the sleeping compartment with Bland and told officers “I’m dying,” “I’m bleeding out, help me,” and “He’s killing me,” police said.
IMPD said officers tried to get Bland to cooperate with them, and “at some point,” officers entered the sleeping compartment. Police said Bland was on top of the woman, who was bleeding from her head. One officer fired their weapon, striking Bland.
Officers got the woman out of the semi truck, and was treated on-scene by officers and later medics for multiple lacerations. IMPD said it was “immediately apparent” that Bland was dead.
This is the 17th shooting involving Indianapolis police officers this year, the highest yearly count since 2015. There were 20 shootings that year.
The IMPD Critical Incident Response Team responded to conduct a criminal investigation. A separate administrative investigation is being done by IMPD Internal Affairs. The civilian-majority Use of Force Review Board will later conduct a mandatory hearing.
Contact WFYI criminal justice reporter Katrina Pross at kpross@wfyi.org.
Pross is a Corps Member of Report for America, an initiative of The GroundTruth Project.
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