HANCOCK COUNTY, Ind. — A man is facing charges for an alleged road rage shooting in Hancock County that started with a crash on the east side of Indianapolis.
Police responded to County Road 300 North in Hancock County on a report of shots fired on Saturday afternoon.
Court documents showed Gary Randle fired a shot at another car after a chase that began in Indianapolis.
The bullet allegedly went through the driver's side door of a car with two minors inside. Nobody was hit.
"In this instance, there was a lot of things that could've been done that could've prevented it. Unfortunately, in this case, the probable cause is telling us that Mr. Randle chose to do something else and that's why he's facing these charges," said Hancock County Prosecutor Brent Eaton.
Randle is charged with criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon.
He allegedly told police the car with two minors inside rear-ended him on Emerson Street in Indianapolis. Instead of pulling over, Randle told officers the car took off eastbound on I-70.
Court documents show Randle chased that car to 300 North and 500 West in Hancock County, where the car the minors were driving spun out and left the road.
Those documents allege Randle fired a shot from a revolver as he drove by. Police said they found a fresh bullet hole on the driver's side door.
Court records show Randle told police as he was passing by that car that spun off the road, he heard three or four gunshots, so he pulled out his gun and fired a shot at the car. Police said they only found evidence of one shot being fired at the scene.
State police said in the Indianapolis Division alone, they have investigated 17 shootings and 70 instances of firearms being shown in road rage incidents on interstates so far in 2023.
"It's not acceptable when you're mad at somebody on the interstate or a county or state roads to - because you're upset - to pull out your firearm and start blasting away at people. That's not what we need to do," said Eaton.
He gives credit to the numerous witnesses that came forward with information.
"We in Hancock County appreciate that the people that saw these things reached out, they called us," said Eaton. "Law enforcement was able to be at the scene and respond within minutes. We were able to move things along very quickly and that’s really a testament to the folks we have out here."
Randle is being held on a $1,000 bond.