INDIANAPOLIS — A teenager accused of killing three people last year is at home with an ankle bracelet, instead of behind bars.
A Marion County judge gave the order releasing Caden Smith, along with throwing out key evidence in the case.
Family members of the victims call that decision dangerous and say they're frustrated with the courts. They expected to be in a courtroom Monday, watching justice begin to play out.
"He was just a really good person, great father, loyal to his family. He's just truly missed," said Michael James Jr.'s mother, Gladys Larsen.
It's been one year since Larsen was murdered, one of three young men shot multiple times and left in a field on the south side of Indianapolis.
"Surreal," said Michael James Sr. "I've experienced losses, but nothing like this."
His parents are stunned that a judge recently let his accused killer out of jail.
Smith's trial, which was originally supposed to start Monday, has been stalled. The judge in the case released the teenager with a GPS ankle monitor. He's at home and just can't leave the state.
"I'm at disbelief. Really puzzled," James said.
"I just don't understand how and why this is being allowed," Larsen added.
Smith is accused of killing James, Abdulla Mubarak and Joseph Thomas on two separate days last October.
According to court documents, IMPD detectives say they found the gun matching bullet fragments in the boys' bodies in Smith's home on West Thompson Road, along with a bulletproof vest, bags of drugs and several cell phones with internet searches like "Does freezing a gun remove DNA" and "How many deaths is considered a mass murder."
But Marion County Judge Jennifer P. Harrison recently ruled that law enforcement violated Smith's Fourth Amendment rights in the search warrant, even though the original warrant was signed and approved by another judge.
Harrison also suppressed key evidence in the case, including the alleged murder weapon.
Family members, including the mother of Michael's young children, call the decision dangerous.
"I've got kids here and now I've got to sit here and think if this kid cuts off his anklet, is someone gonna get him in time before he's gone?" she asked. "And now I have to worry about my kids."
"I think it is very dangerous," Larsen said. "You find the murder weapon in someone's home and you set them free on GPS? Who's to say this is not going to happen again? Who's to say he's not going to seek revenge on family members? There are a lot of variables here we are very concerned about. I am actually a former Chicago police officer and I do not put anything past Caden Smith."
The Marion County Prosecutor's Office objected to Smith's release and Indiana's attorney general has now filed an appeal in the case. Prosecutors also asked for, and were granted, a stay in the case until the appeal is heard.
Attorneys are set to meet again in January.
Family members of the young men killed say they just want justice.
"We have to put things in motion so we can get Caden Smith back behind bars where he belongs before he hurts someone else," Larsen said.
"I'm just in disbelief, because these three young men don't have a chance to share love and be with their families anymore," James added, "because a lot of families were affected by this heinous act."