Indiana judge convicts man in Black man's 2020 killing

A man has been convicted of reckless homicide in the fatal 2020 shooting of a young Black man in Indianapolis during unrest sparked by outrage over George Floyd’s killing by Minneapolis police.

Prosecutors had charged Tyler Newby, 32, with murder, but after a one-day bench trial a Marion County judge found Newby, who is white, guilty Monday of the lesser crime of reckless homicide in Dorian Murrell's death. His sentencing was set for Nov. 10.

Murrell, 18, died from a single gunshot wound to the heart after being shot in downtown Indianapolis on May 31, 2020, during violence that followed protests over the death of Floyd, a Black man.

Newby's first trial in Murrell's killing ended in a mistrial last year after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict following several hours of deliberation.

Newby turned himself in shortly after the shooting. He claimed self defense, saying the shooting took place after he was approached by a group of people and shoved to the ground. Newby said he saw someone standing over him and fired.

Prosecutors argued that being shoved to the ground wasn’t justification to take someone’s life.

Three people who had been with Murrell when he was shot have been charged in connection with the robbery and killing of Chris Beaty, a businessman and a former Indiana University football player. Beaty, 38, was fatally shot in downtown Indianapolis hours before Murrell was slain.