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Last updated on Wednesday, August 20, 2014
(INDIANAPOLIS) - The Marion County Prosecutor will seek the death penalty against the man suspected of killing Indianapolis Police Officer Perry Renn.
Prosecutor Terry Curry filed paperwork to seek a death sentence against 25-year-old Major Davis, Jr. saying there were aggravating circumstances surrounding last month's murder of Renn that justified it.
"The murder was motivated by an act by Officer Renn performed while acting in the course of duty," Curry said, hoping to send a message to others who target police. "Make no mistake. We will prosecute you to the maximum extent possible under the law."
Curry says the decision on Davis was made the same way death penalty decisions are always made by his office, with a thorough review by several prosecutors and a discussion with the family of the murder victim. He says he was not worried about whether seeking execution would be a factor in possibly forcing the trial outside Indianapolis due to publicity. "In terms of a decision that we have to make, that has no bearing on that decision."
Renn was responding to a call of shots fired near 34th Street on the east side when he was shot dead July 5. While he wishes the potential execution of Davis if he is convicted would help stop attacks on officers, Curry isn't confident that will be the case. "i don't think that utilizing the death penalty is a deterrent, just as imposing various sanctions is a deterrent to crime going forward," Curry said.
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