Homicide

MICHIGAN CITY - Police are investigating the death of a retired Michigan City teacher. Officers on Thursday were called to the 500 block of E. 8 th St. in regards to a welfare check. When they arrived, they found a person dead inside his apartment. The victim is identified as 66-year-old Henry Whitten. An autopsy was performed on Friday, and the cause of death has been ruled a homicide. Police say the case is being aggressively investigated. Anyone who knows anything about the case is asked to contact Detective Cpl. Greg Jesse at (219)

The death late Monday night of 21-year-old Jesse Bowen has been ruled a homicide, according to John White, Elkhart County coroner. After an autopsy, White says Bowen died from a single gunshot wound to the chest. Officers were called to Bowen's home in the 56000 block of Best Avenue just before 11 p.m. Capt. James Bradberry released Bowen's name Tuesday afternoon and noted the sheriff's department death investigation is continuing. Stay connected to WSBT on air and online for updates on this breaking story.

PEORIA, Ill. (AP) - A coroner's jury in Peoria County has ruled that the May death of a 4-year-old girl who had been living in a foster home was a homicide. Peoria County Coroner Johnna Ingersoll said Tuesday that Kianna Rudesill was living in a foster home in Cullom in rural eastern Illinois on May 3 when she suffered numerous injuries to her head, back, arms and legs. The girl was taken to a Peoria hospital where she died the next day. The Pantagraph newspaper in Bloomington ( http://bit.ly/pSC66L )

MISHAWAKA - Police are investigating a possible homicide in the 300 block of East Donaldson Avenue in Mishawaka. An elderly woman, now identified by police as 84-year-old Lois Hickey, was found dead Thursday morning in her home. A neighbor called police around 9 a.m. after noticing Hickey's front window was broken open, officials said. Police believe Hickey may have been dead for more than a day, said Lt. David Wells, assistant commander of the St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit.

An Elkhart County man faces reckless homicide charges in the death of a man found in the Elkhart River last summer. Police arrested 42-year-old Larry Hewitt of Middlebury yesterday in a West Memphis, Arkansas homeless shelter and extradited him to Elkhart County. The prosecutor's office filed reckless homicide charges against him in the death of 53-year-old Charles Wolfinger. Wolfinger died from blunt force trauma to his head and chest. On the 17th of July, Elkhart Fire Department's River Rescue Team helped pull Wolfinger's body from the river in the 500 block of East Jackson Boulevard.

SOUTH BEND — Police have arrested a 19-year-old in connection with the October 2009 killing of a South Bend man. Sean Lottie was arrested by the St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit March 17, according to county jail records. Lottie and seven others have been charged in connection with the shooting death of Phillip Bell. Bell was shot to death in the 600 block of Birdsell Street Oct. 21. Lottie has been charged with one count of attempted murder and is being held in the St. Joseph County Jail on a $10,000 cash bond.

William Robert Barker of Niles died after police say he pulled a knife and attacked Berrien County Deputy Sheriff Trent Babcock, who shot him multiple times. Witnesses said they heard the officer tell Barker "don't do this" or "don't make me do this" just before the shots were fired. Now, after an investigation, the St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office has determined Babcock was acting in self defense and his actions were justifiable. Click here to read the full details of that investigation.

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) - A northeastern Indiana coroner has ruled as a homicide the July death of a man allegedly pushed down a flight of stairs. The Journal Gazette reports (http://bit.ly/n0sRBB ) the Allen County Coroner's office declared Charles Lee Milton's death a homicide Wednesday because injuries from his fall caused him to suffer pneumonia and respiratory failure. Edmund James Turner was arrested Feb. 16 after Milton suffered a broken neck and a severe cut on his forehead in the fall.

Today we could learn the name of the independent investigator picked to look into claims the head of the St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Division threatened a South Bend police officer. South Bend police Corporal Jack Stilp claims Commander Tim Corbett threatened him for talking about the recorded phone calls at the center of the wiretapping investigation at South Bend police. The St. Joseph County Prosecutor's Office told us Friday they have been interviewing someone.

NILES — Nearly a month after a Niles couple was found murdered in their home, police say they have new information about a car that may have been in the area when the murders happened. They want your help to figure out who was driving. Police say while they don't know the make or model of the car, witnesses described as an early 1990’s mid-size, 4-door sedan that is sky or light blue in color. They want to know if anyone saw a car like that near Yankee and Carberry streets in the early morning hours of February 5. That's when someone killed John and Carolyn Tarwacki.

MICHIGAN CITY - Police are investigating the death of a retired Michigan City teacher. Officers on Thursday were called to the 500 block of E. 8 th St. in regards to a welfare check. When they arrived, they found a person dead inside his apartment. The victim is identified as 66-year-old Henry Whitten. An autopsy was performed on Friday, and the cause of death has been ruled a homicide. Police say the case is being aggressively investigated. Anyone who knows anything about the case is asked to contact Detective Cpl. Greg Jesse at (219)

ELKHART - Police have released the name of a suspect in a deadly shooting in Elkhart last month that happened in broad daylight. Investigators say bystanders took 34-year-old Eddie Johnson to Elkhart General Hospital after the April 30 shooting at the intersection of 6th and Cleveland just before 4:30 p.m. Johnson was pronounced dead at the hospital. Elkhart police say they are looking for Leeshawn Nathaniel Rodgers, 19, of Elkhart. They say he is armed and dangerous.

An Elkhart County man faces reckless homicide charges in the death of a man found in the Elkhart River last summer. Police arrested 42-year-old Larry Hewitt of Middlebury yesterday in a West Memphis, Arkansas homeless shelter and extradited him to Elkhart County. The prosecutor's office filed reckless homicide charges against him in the death of 53-year-old Charles Wolfinger. Wolfinger died from blunt force trauma to his head and chest. On the 17th of July, Elkhart Fire Department's River Rescue Team helped pull Wolfinger's body from the river in the 500 block of East Jackson Boulevard.

FLINT, Mich. (AP) - Authorities say a church funeral for Flint's last homicide victim of 2012 was the scene of one of the central Michigan city's first killings of 2013. Police Chief Alvern Lock tells Mlive.com ( http://bit.ly/WTcLqG ) that a man was shot to death Saturday afternoon inside Full Gospel Christian Church. Lock says the killer fled and is still at large. The victim is identified as 28-year-old Steven Lawton. The church was the site of Saturday's funeral for Gerrell Tyler, who was shot Dec. 30 to become Flint's 66th homicide victim of the year.

The family of an elderly woman found murdered in her Elkhart home says she was brutally beaten. And we've learned from the Elkhart County Prosecutor that a 17-year-old has been arrested in the case.  Norma Hopper, 76, was found dead in her home on Michael Drive Friday morning. A coroner ruled her death a homicide but police haven't released any details about the case.  According to Hopper's niece, who found her body in the bedroom, the crime scene was "brutal.

Several people who live just west of Western Ave., in the 400 blk  of Walnut and Huron Streets said they heard gunshots ring out around 11 or 12 Wednesday night.  But they didn't know a man was dead in an alley between the two streets until hours later - when someone found 42-year-old Andre Byrd.  “First there was two or three, then I heard like a machine gun [sound] so it frightened me, it scared me,” said Severo Jimenez, who lives nearby. That gunfire sent Jimenez to the floor, fearing for his life.

SOUTH BEND - Friends gathered Saturday at a home at 1022 E. Bowman St. for the Notre Dame football game, dining on ham and beans that a family friend was fixing there on Friday - before he was shot to death. The man was apparently an innocent bystander when two males allegedly came into the home and went after someone else, said Liz Armenakis. She said that she wasn't there at the time of the shooting, about 5:30 p.m. Friday, but that her sister lives in the home. Police say they found the 51-year-old victim dead in the home.

St. Joseph County Metro Homicide says they have made another arrest in connection with a murder from 2011. Police say they arrested a man for murder, felony murder and robbery in connection with the death of 31-year-old Dietrich Perkins. He was arrested around 8 Friday night near Portage and Cleveland roads in South Bend. Police are not releasing the man's name. Metro Homicide based this new arrest on information from a plea deal earlier Friday. The suspect arrested Friday night will be arraigned on Monday or Tuesday.  Perkins, of Hammond, was shot and killed near the corner of Lathrop and Johnson streets in April of 2011.

The man in charge of investigating St. Joseph County's most violent crimes is in trouble himself. The prosecutor believes a phone conversation Metro Homicide Commander Tim Corbett had with a South Bend police officer "had a damaging effect on the reputation of the" Metro Homicide unit. Corbett will now serve a five day, unpaid suspension because of what he said in that phone call. He was accused of threatening, harassing and intimidating a fellow police officer, but a special investigator decided Corbett didn't do any of that.

SOUTH BEND - We're learning more about the investigation into an allegation that the commander of the St. Joseph County Metro Homicide Unit threatened a South Bend police officer. St. Joseph County Prosecutor Mike Dvorak tells WSBT Special Investigator David Steele has conducted interviews. When more interviews are finished, Dvorak will share his findings with the board that oversees Metro Homicide. Their next meeting is in August. South Bend police officer Jack Stilp accused Metro Homicide Commander Tim Corbett of threatening him, telling him not to talk about recorded phone calls at the police department that led to the demotion of South Bend Police Chief Darryl Boykins.