Justified Homicides in Indianapolis Double after Constitutional Carry

After constitutional carry went into effect in Indiana, the number of non-criminal homicides in Indianapolis doubled. Indiana had been a “shall issue” state since at least 1983. In 2022, Indiana became a Constitutional Carry state, with the law going into effect on July 1, 2022.

The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) has been keeping records of homicides in the city for a number of years.  The IMPD differentiates between criminal homicides and non-criminal homicides. IMPD has made the numbers available to the media. Non-criminal homicides include defense of self and others, homicides by police, and fatal firearms accidents. Fatal firearm accidents are a tiny percentage of all fatalities associated with firearms. A proportion of them are self-inflicted and can be confused with suicides.

In 2021, there were 271 homicides in Indianapolis. 249 were recorded as criminal. 22 of them were non-criminal.  Half of 2022 passed before the Constitutional Carry law went into effect on July 1. Half of 2022 was under the new law. In 2022 there were 226 total homicides. 211 of them were criminal. 15 of them were non-criminal. In 2023, the first year the law was fully in effect, there were 216 total homicides. 171 were criminal. 45 of them were non-criminal.

The FBI’s definition of justified homicide is extremely restrictive. It undercounts justified homicides by an order of 4 out of 5. The counting by the IMPD appears to be closer to reality.

As more people are able to legally carry firearms in public, it is reasonable to assume the number of recorded justified fatalities will increase. To be justified in using deadly force, a defender has to reasonably believe deadly force is necessary to prevent severe bodily harm or death. Here is the statutory language. From IC 35-41-3-2:

(c) A person is justified in using reasonable force against any other person to protect the person or a third person from what the person reasonably believes to be the imminent use of unlawful force. However, a person:

(1) is justified in using deadly force; and

(2) does not have a duty to retreat;

if the person reasonably believes that that force is necessary to prevent serious bodily injury to the person or a third person or the commission of a forcible felony. No person, employer, or estate of a person in this state shall be placed in legal jeopardy of any kind whatsoever for protecting the person or a third person by reasonable means necessary.

Perhaps someone will do a rigorous study of the increase in non-criminal homicides in Indianapolis. Correlation does not prove causation. Proof requires more. Correlation is an indicator.

People who support the Second Amendment and self-defense see an increase in non-criminal homicides as an indicator the need for self-defense was being suppressed by the restrictions on the legal carry of weapons. Remove the restrictions, and more people are able to prevent criminal homicides, assaults, rapes and other felonies.  The drop in overall homicides is consistent with this explanation. Alternatively, when the restrictions on carry are removed, fewer people will be concerned about whether the carry of a firearm is legal or not. They are more willing to talk to the police and show evidence the homicide was justified. Thus, more justified homicides are recorded as such.

Those who want a disarmed population argue no one should ever be shot and killed.  They argue allowing people to defend themselves only causes more people to be shot and killed. This argument assumes ordinary people are not capable of moral armed self-defense.

The year before Constitutional Carry went into effect in Indianapolis, there were 249 criminal homicides and 22 which were not criminal, for a total of 271. In 2022, Constitutional Carry was in effect for six months, the criminal homicides dropped to 211, with a non-criminal homicide count of 15, for a total of 226. In 2023, when Constitutional Carry was in effect for the full year, there were 171 criminal homicides and 45 non-criminal homicides, for a total of 216.

All non-criminal homicides are investigated. For a justified homicide, the evidence has to indicate there was a reasonably understood defense against serious bodily injury or death (except the extremely rare fatal accident). Without such serious danger, the incident would be criminal. The increase in non-criminal homicides in Indianapolis indicates the number of people killed has decreased.

The people being killed include more criminal predators and fewer innocent victims.

About Dean Weingarten:

Dean Weingarten has been a peace officer, a military officer, was on the University of Wisconsin Pistol Team for four years, and was first certified to teach firearms safety in 1973. He taught the Arizona concealed carry course for fifteen years until the goal of Constitutional Carry was attained. He has degrees in meteorology and mining engineering, and retired from the Department of Defense after a 30 year career in Army Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation.