US officials are looking into whether to file charges against an Indiana homeowner who shot and killed a house cleaner who mistakenly showed up at the wrong address.
Police say they found Maria Florinda Rios Perez dead in her husband’s arms on the front porch of a home on Wednesday shortly before 0700 local time (12:00 GMT).
Authorities had been responding to a call about a possible home invasion in the Indianapolis suburb of Whitestown. The two did not appear to have entered the home, police said in a statement.
They have formally submitted the case to the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office for review to determine whether criminal charges will be brought in the case.
Police have not identified the people in the home or who fired the shot, saying in a statement on Friday that it is a “complex, delicate, and evolving case, and it would be both inappropriate and potentially dangerous to disclose that information”.
They urged patience, warning of a “concerning spread of misinformation online” about the case.
Mauricio Velazquez, told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner, that he wanted justice for his 32-year-old wife.
News reports say that she was a mother of four and originally from Guatemala.
In an interview with CBS affiliate WTTV, Mr Velazquez said the bullet came right through the door of the home.
“They should’ve called the police first instead of just shooting out of nowhere like that,” he said through an interpreter.
Boone County prosecutor Kent Eastwood told The Indianapolis Star that the case is complex due to the language of the state’s stand-your-ground law.
Stand-your-ground laws are in place in many US states and most permit an individual to protect themselves with the use of reasonable force, including deadly force, to prevent death or great bodily harm.
Similar incidents have made headlines across the US in recent years.
In 2023, Ralph Yarl, who was then 16, was shot twice after ringing the doorbell of the wrong home in Missouri. Andrew Lester, who was in his 80s, pleaded guilty and died while awaiting sentencing.
In New York, 20-year-old Kaylin Gillis died after being shot upon entering the wrong driveway. The homeowner who shot her is now serving a 25-year sentence.
By BBC News
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