Parker
The 18-year-old accused of driving a vehicle from which another teen allegedly shot four people at Lincoln Park in Columbus on May 23 made an initial court appearance Friday.
Alexander I. Parker, 18, of 512 Pence St., Columbus, appeared wearing handcuffs and orange jail scrubs via Zoom video teleconference from the Bartholomew County Jail. Bartholomew Circuit Judge Kelly Benjamin entered initial not guilty pleas for Parker on four counts of Level 3 felony aiding, inducing or causing aggravated battery and a single count of assisting a criminal by driving a getaway vehicle.
Authorities said Parker drove a vehicle into the park with Edmarius Malik Oats, 18, of 3464 Old Field Lane, riding as a passenger. Oats is accused of opening fire on people playing basketball at the park, wounding Gavin Hardin, 18, Tyler Hamm, 23, and two juveniles, one 16-years-old and one 17-years-old.
On Friday, Benjamin set Parker’s bond at $850,000 surety or $85,000 cash bond.
Parker largely answered yes or no to questions from Benjamin advising of his rights and whether he planned to hire counsel.
As Benjamin asked Parker about his ability to afford a lawyer, he initially said he didn’t work before saying he had been earning about $100 a week as a Doordash delivery driver.
Benjamin found Parker partially indigent and appointed Greg Long as his public defender.
Officers at the scene of the May 23 shootings were told a gray or silver car driven by Parker pulled up next to the basketball court, court documents state. The courts are behind the Hamilton Center indoor ice rink and adjacent to several ball diamonds.
Witnesses said the rear window of the vehicle rolled down and Oats was seen in the back seat, according to the affidavit. Witnesses told detectives that Oats fired several shots into the crowd, striking four people and then the vehicle left at a high rate of speed.
At the time of the shooting, the park was filled with people playing softball and kickball, and nearby Hamilton Center was having hockey tryouts with numerous young people at the rink. The facility was locked down immediately after the shooting and numerous people on the ball diamonds fled from the shooting, while others went to the scene to try to help the victims.
The affidavit states that there had been an ongoing conflict between Oats and Hardin about a female that both had previously dated. Prior to the shooting, Hardin was at the basketball court with the other victims and Devinion “Abe” Fuller, according to court documents. Fuller placed a call to Oats via Instagram using the 16-year-old’s account, the affidavit states. Oats learned that Hardin was at the Lincoln Park courts and words were exchanged between Oats and Hardin with Fuller “being the middle man,” according to the affidavit.
At one point, Oats told Fuller to pass the message to Hardin that Oats was going to come and “shoot him in his (expletive),” with the shooting occurring about 30 minutes after that message, according to the affidavit.
When Hardin was interviewed by detectives, he said he believed the shooter was Oats, according to the affidavit.
Parker was later located driving the suspect vehicle toward Franklin and was stopped and arrested, the affidavit states. Investigators did find a shell casing inside the vehicle, court documents state. Parker admitted to being the driver of the vehicle but refused to tell detectives who was in the vehicle with him, the affidavit states.
Detectives found three spent 9mm shell casings and unspent .22 bullets in Parker’s vehicle, the affidavit states.
Benjamin set Parker’s change of plea hearing for Sept. 11 at 10:15 a.m. before Bartholomew Superior Court 1 Judge James Worton. A final pretrial conference is set for Sept. 25 at 11 a.m., and Parker’s jury trial date is set for 8:30 a.m. Oct. 10.
If convicted, the four Level 3 charges against Parker each carry a sentencing range of three to 16 years in prison, and the Level 5 charge carries a range of one to six years in prison.
Outside the courtroom Friday, Parker’s mother, Aimee Richwood, said her son was innocent and had gone to the park to play basketball.
Earlier this week, Oats made an initial court appearance before Worton and denied being involved in the shooting. Oats is held on $5 million surety or $500,000 cash bond on charges of attempted murder as a Level 1 felony, and four separate counts of Level 3 felony aggravated battery when the assault posses a substantial risk of death.
If convicted on all counts, Oats faces a potential prison sentence of 32 to 114 years, as well as up to $50,000 in fines.
