SILVERVILLE – Newly released court documents provide an account of the events leading to the arrest of Kameron Lee McMaken, 22, of Silverville, who is accused of murdering his father, Chad McMaken, 47, on Friday evening.
A Probable Cause Affidavit, filed by Lawrence County Sheriff’s Department Detective Michael Williams, outlines the details that led to Kameron McMaken’s arrest on charges including murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated battery, and pointing a loaded firearm.
According to the affidavit, the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office Dispatch Center received a 911 call on Friday, April 11th, from a male identifying himself as Kameron McMaken. During the call, McMaken reportedly stated that he had been in a fight with his father and had shot him in the head at their residence located at 275 State Road 158 in Williams. When the dispatcher asked Kameron to check on the victim, he allegedly replied, “He’s gone. I shot him in the expliciitve face.”
Deputies who responded to the scene made contact with Kameron McMaken, who was subsequently handcuffed and read his Miranda rights by Deputy Christian James. According to the affidavit, McMaken then spoke with Deputy James, stating that he believed his father was harming a cat inside the home.
Kameron described a verbal argument escalating to a physical altercation when he attempted to prevent his father from entering a room where animals were kept. McMaken reportedly told Deputy James, “I instinctually grabbed the gun,” explaining it was a loaded firearm that had been on the kitchen table, as he was “unsure of how the interaction with his father was going to end” and intended to “show his father the gun to get him to calm down.” McMaken stated that instead of calming down, his father fought him, and then, “I panicked and shot him.”
Captain Lonnie Johnson conducted a protective sweep of the residence and observed the deceased body of Chad McMaken on the kitchen floor.
The affidavit further details the execution of a search warrant by Indiana State Police Crime Scene Technicians, who located a firearm matching the description provided by Kameron next to his father’s body. Lawrence County Coroner Elizabeth Freeman provided an initial cause of death as a non-contact gunshot wound to the head, a finding later concurred by Dr. James Jacobi following a forensic examination.
During a subsequent interview at the Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office with Detective Captain James Slone and Detective Michael Williams, Kameron McMaken was again advised of his Miranda rights and agreed to speak to the detectives.
Kameron reportedly stated that he knew he had “done something very stupid” and admitted, “I shot my father.”
Kameron described an evening when his father and brother returned home from work and began consuming alcohol. He stated that his parents had a loud verbal argument, after which he retrieved a loaded 20-gauge single-shot shotgun from under his bed and placed it in the kitchen.
Kameron further detailed an incident where he saw his father holding a cat by its front legs, leading him to intervene and secure it with other animals in his bedroom.
Kameron described a physical fight between his brother and father, followed by a verbal argument between himself and his father, which continued after his father went outside to smoke.
According to the affidavit, the final confrontation occurred in the living room after his father returned inside and told Kameron to leave the house. Kameron stated that when his father moved toward his bedroom where the animals were, he followed, and a shoving match ensued. It was at this point that Kameron allegedly picked up the loaded shotgun, pointed it at his father, and, during a struggle over the firearm, pulled the trigger, fatally shooting his father in the face.
Kameron was arrested at his home and booked into the Lawrence County Jail.
All criminal defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.
