Prosecutors charged multiple people after a shooting last year at a Southern Indiana festival that killed 18-year-old Bryce Gerlach and injured others.
LPM News previously reported that police believe the defendants were involved in a dispute that led to the shooting near the rides area at Harvest Homecoming, an annual fall festival in downtown New Albany.
In total, more than a dozen people were charged related to the shooting.
Floyd County Prosecutor Chris Lane said the majority of those charged, which includes minors, have reached plea agreements.
Prosecutors ultimately charged several people with murder. Now, just one person, Isaiah A. Page, still has that charge.
Lane said at a news conference in November he was operating under an Indiana statute that allows a murder charge if a person dies while a felony is being committed.
Damarius Gardiner Person, Joshua M. Smith and Darius Tuff were charged with murder. They went on to plead guilty to lesser charges earlier this year and have been sentenced.
Page’s attorney, Dustin White, told LPM News plea negotiations are ongoing, but nothing has been accepted. He said he expects the case to go to trial. That’s currently set for Oct. 27.
“We’re still working through all the evidence,” White said.
Shermichael J. Smith has until recently been held without bond in his case. In July, a judge gave him a bond of $250,000 full cash after court records show the state modified his charges — from murder to conspiracy to commit aggravated battery and attempted murder to armed robbery.
A hearing to lower that bond started this week, and will continue Aug. 7.
His attorney, Perry McCall, said he’s hopeful the judge will go down to $100,000, but that will still be difficult for the family to pay.
He said Smith has no prior criminal history and that he “sincerely believes his client had nothing to do with the tragic events of that night.”
Lane, the Floyd County prosecutor, declined to speak on individual cases.
“Overall, we’re pleased with the progress that we’re making in the cases related to the Harvest Homecoming,” he said. “...Our primary purpose in everything that we do is the safety [of the community.]”
The shooting, which happened just before 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 12, led officials to close the festival early and cancel all events for the final day.
Event leadership announced on social media in May they were working with local law enforcement to ramp up security measures for this year’s Harvest Homecoming.
Plans include increased police presence, updated festival hours and additional barricades. They also plan for checkpoints for the rides area. People under 18 must be accompanied by someone over the age of 21.
Coverage of Southern Indiana is funded, in part, by Samtec Inc., the Hazel & Walter T. Bales Foundation, and the Caesars Foundation of Floyd County.
