An Indiana teenager who police say killed two men and a teenager has been ordered to be released on GPS monitoring after key evidence was tossed out in the Indianapolis case.
On September 28, the Marion Superior Court ruled in favor of 17-year-old Caden Smith’s attorneys to suppress evidence that was submitted for the trial.
Smith faces numerous charges, including murder and dangerous possession of a machine gun, connected to the death of three people in October 2021.
The victims were identified as 22-year-old Michael James, 17-year-old Abdullah Mubarak, and 18-year-old Joseph Thomas.
Smith’s defense attorney David Hennessy argued that the search warrants the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department detectives applied for were defective and without probable cause.
The court agreed that the warrant was defective, ordering all items seized as a result of this warrant must be suppressed, as law enforcement violated Smith’s fourth and fourteenth amendment rights.
While the state asked the court to reconsider that ruling, the request was denied. Now the Attorney General’s office is appealing the decision to suppress the evidence.
The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office said the suppressed evidence was key in their case. In a previous report, the office said the evidence included the murder weapon. The state has since had the case put on hold until the appeal is completed.
With the appeal pending, Smith was ordered released from custody and to be placed on GPS monitoring. The county prosecutor’s office also said they objected Smith’s release.
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