Prosecutor dismisses murder charge against brother as self-defense

INDIANAPOLIS — Either way, what happened inside a house in the 3700 block of Boulevard Place late on a Sunday night in April of 2024 was a family tragedy as one brother shot to death another.

This week, the Marion County Prosecutor dismissed the murder charge against the shooter as a case of self-defense, as the man claimed his brother was attacking him.

“The DNA and forensic evidence was consistent with what the defendant was saying,” said former Prosecutor Mario Massillamany, who is not affiliated with this case. “And because it was consistent and corroborated his story, it bolstered his claim of self-defense.”

In filing the Motion to Dismiss, the prosecutor found, “The Defendant told detectives that Damon Anderson grabbed him around the neck…was grabbing for the Defendant’s handgun…said, “If you don’t do it to me, I’m going to do it to you,”…it was going to be “me or you,” and, the brother had good reason to fear for his life because, “Damon Anderson had been convicted of Murder…the Defendant was aware of this information…and…That the fact that Damon Anderson had been convicted of Murder would be admissible at trial.”

A veteran defense attorney told FOX59/CBS4 that combining the crime scene evidence with the brother’s reasonable fear would have likely led a jury to vote a not guilty verdict.

”You have to look at the situation from the person’s perspective,” said Denise Turner, who is not affiliated with the case. “So the person who is using self-defense, you have to look at the situation from their perspective, what they knew at the time about the other person, what was going on, if they were actually experiencing some sort of threat or actual injury, which is what I think was happening in this particular case.”

Indiana law shifts the burden of proof to the prosecutor to disprove a defendant’s self-defense claim.

”When the defendant files a notice of self-defense, that’s an affirmative defense,” said Massillamany. “So the burden shifts from the prosecutor’s office having to prove beyond a reasonable doubt just the elements of the charge, but now they have to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant didn’t act in self-defense.”

Turner said she’s seen the number of self-defense cases increase over the past few years.

”A lot of jurors in Indiana, they respect and understand self-defense; they understand that that is an absolute right that we have,” she said. ”I do think that the number of self-defense cases have gone up.”

In 2023, IMPD listed 45 of its 213 homicides as non-criminal, which includes self-defense and accidental killings, a statistical spike over the previous years.

2023 was also the first full year that the impact of Indiana’s constitutional carry law would be felt.

”10 years ago, you had to have a license to carry, but now that there is no requirement that you have a permit, more people have guns, and more people are carrying guns,” said Turner. “Given the violence that has been happening in Marion County over the last several years, I do think that there has been an increase of people carrying firearms simply for their own protection, and in those situations where they might have been a victim, being able to protect themselves.”

This year, IMPD reports that 22 of its 116 homicides are categorized as non-criminal.

”More people are carrying guns, it’s easier for legal citizens, people that are allowed to have guns do have guns, and I think people are fearful of the fact of turning away, leaving and they’re standing their ground,” said Massillamany. ”Our stand your ground self-defense laws in the state of Indiana are pretty robust, I would use that word, because we allow Hoosiers the opportunity to protect themselves and protect other individuals. I think jurors are a lot more likely to give the defendant the benefit of the doubt, especially when it’s unfortunate and it’s hard to tell a juror to not put themselves in the defendant’s shoes.”