The Color Of Crime In Fort Wayne 2020

In January of 2020 I started a project to review all of the homicides in neighboring Allen County, Indiana which is home to a whole bunch of Amish as well as the city of Fort Wayne. Surprisingly the number of homicides in the Amish community is much lower than in the city of Fort Wayne. As a result of this project I published a post that broke down all of the homicides in Allen County, Indiana titled The Color Of Crime In Fort Wayne. It was a pretty time consuming post, requiring that I investigate each murder to learn about the victim and then also the identity of the killer, often still awaiting trial. 

2019 was a fairly quiet year in Fort Wayne, with only 29 homicides*. The unsurprising conclusion from my study was that in 2019, in a city with a black population around 15%, 83% of homicide victims were black and of the known offenders, 84% were black. Again, the racial group accounting for 15% of Fort Wayne’s residents was responsible for, at a minimum, 84% of the murders in Fort Wayne in 2019.

Fort Wayne saw a significant spike in murders in 2020, as did virtually every urban area in America. It was the great untold story of 2020. While there were 29 new homicides in 2019, we saw a huge jump in 2020 to 43 homicides. Unfortunately it seems that 2019 was an anomaly as we see the following homicide numbers for the last five years:

2016 – 49 

2017 – 41

2018 – 46

2019 – 29

2020 – 43

Nothing would lead me to believe that we are going to see fewer murders in 2021. This is from my prior post:

The nearest city to where we live is Fort Wayne, Indiana. The outskirts of FW are about 15 minutes away but FW is a sprawling city that includes a lot of undeveloped/farm land as well as more traditional city and suburbia so I would have to drive quite a way to get into the “real” city. The city is named after General Anthony Wayne, so it has that in common with my high school alma mater, Anthony Wayne High School.

Fort Wayne is often cited as one of the most livable cities in the country as well as having one of the lowest cost of living in America. With a population of around a quarter of a million, FW is the second largest city in Indiana, a pretty distant second when compared to Indianapolis, with over 2 million people in her metropolitan area. It is a city with a less than happening night life but it is a great city if you have a family. In general we like it that way. However Fort Wayne also has it’s share of crime.

Demographically, Fort Wayne is like many American cities with a significantly shrinking white population, estimated at around 70% in 2010 compared to well over 85% in 1970. The black population of FW is around 15%, higher than the national average and significantly higher than Indiana as a whole. Keep this in mind.

I watch the local news fairly closely and I assume I am going to find the same racial break-down of murder victims and murderers when I examine 2020. I am using WANE 15’s data from this post: By the numbers: 2020 Allen County homicides

1. Marlon Lee Kimbrough was the first murder of the year and was found dead near some railroad tracks. A suspect has been arrested, Sedrick Williams, who appears to be White. Based on his name, as I couldn’t find a picture, I am assuming Marlon was black.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: White

2. Diquan Q. Meriwether was murdered in a dispute over money and a woman was arrested, 19 year old Kennisha J. Jackson, a black woman. Diquan was a black man, also 19 years of age.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

3. Than Kahn Khai was shot in his home in what is believed to be one of a series of “gang retaliation” shootings. Khai was Asian, no suspect has been arrested and no description was available.

Victim Race: Unknown

Killer Race: Asian

4. Warrell K. Booher was stabbed to death in January and a black man named Michael Foster has been arrested for his killing. Booher’s race was not mentioned.

Victim Race: Unknown

Killer Race: black

5. Eric Ray McDonnell Jr. a 15 year old White male was found shot to death in an alleyway in Fort Wayne, his killer was pretty quickly arrested, Cameron Hallett, a 22 year old White male

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: White

6. Tonisha T. Richardson, a black woman, was another stabbing death in Fort Wayne, and another black woman named Alisha Lampkin was arrested for her murder. Lampkin was apparently the “baby momma”, quote from the news article, of the current boyfriend of Tonisha and killed her in some sort of domestic dispute.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

7. Mon Ong, an Asian man, was killed in a triple shooting in February during an apparent robbery. Three men, two black (Kerwins Louis and Jamesley Paul) and one Asian man, Kyaw Hlang were arrested for his murder.

Victim Race: Asian

Killer Race: Asian, black, black

8. Brooke J. Wendel was also killed in the triple shooting by the same three men mentioned above. Brooke was a White female, age 23.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: Asian, black, black

9. Donna Sue Taylor, a White woman, was found murdered in March in what appears to be a murder-suicide. Her killer, 61 year old Nathan Butler, a White male, apparently murdered her and then stayed in the home with her body for several days until killing himself.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: White 

10. Nicholas Phillips, shot dead in his car. He was a 43 year old White man. No information on a suspect or what happened.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: Unknown

11. Marcos Ildefonso Casares was a 37 year old mestizo man, shot and killed in a house that was intentionally set on fire, killing two other men (see below). J. Trinidad Ramirez II, also a mestizo, has been arrested and charged with their murders. 

Victim Race: mestizo

Killer Race: mestizo

12. Nicholas James Elsner was a 26 year old White man, found shot to death in his car. No suspects, no arrest

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: unknown

13. Austin Harrison was a 24 year old man, I couldn’t find a picture but based on his name, his spouse and the names of his family I assume he was White. His wife, Jamie Marsee, a 24 year old White woman was arrested for his murder in what appears to be a domestic situation that got out of hand.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: White

14. Ronnie DonTrell Hall was a 21 year old black man, found shot to death in his car. Bad year to be in a car in Fort Wayne apparently. An 18 year old black man, Anshious Aron, has been arrested and charged in his murder.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

15. Jaden Diaz Lee Nelson, a 19 year old black man, was murdered on May 19th in what police are saying was a drug deal gone bad, even though his obituary says he was turning his life around, based on Facebook messages where Nelson agreed to sell drugs to his eventual killers. Two black males, 16 year old Xavier Walker and 19 year old Ronnie T. Miles, Jr. have been arrested in his murder. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black and black

16. Roosevelt Allen III was a 36 year old black man, shot to death in an incident where two other people were also shot. A 35 year old black man, Paris Patmon, has been charged in his murder. The shooting stemmed from one of the shooting victims calling Patmon a pedophile when he arrived at a party, which was true as he had served time for sexually assaulting a 15 year old girl when he was 30 and was at the party with two young females.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

17. Doak Stanley McBride was a 51 year old White man who has killed in the house fire allegedly set by J. Trinidad Ramirez II in the same incident (#11) where Marcos Ildefonso Casares died. It sounds like McBride was drunk at the time

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: mestizo

18. Kyle Gregory Call, a 32 year old White man, was the third victim of J. Trinidad Ramirez II and also died from smoke inhalation.

Victim Race: White 

Killer Race: mestizo

19. Crystal C. Holmes, a 48 year old black woman, was stabbed to death by a 51 year old black man, David Lee Cortez-Suel, who also is apparently a child molester. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

20. Manuel Mendez, a 34 year old male who looks to be mestizo of some sort, was gunned down by 26 year old Timothy Hall Jr., a black man.

Victim Race: mestizo

Killer Race: black

21. Kenneth “Kenny” Jerome Frierson, II, a 28 year old black man, was shot to death in June. No arrests.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

22. Amanda Louise Hoglund, a 22 year old White woman was shot by Martrell Weaver, a 24 year old man of what appears to be mixed race.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: mixed

23. Jalen Deandre Lindsey, aka Ja’Len De’Andre Lindsey , a 19 year old black man, was shot at a party following a “disturbance”. No arrests have been made.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

24. Jean Emmanuel Duperat a 41 year old man, I couldn’t find a picture but his name sounds Haitian so I will assume he was black. Jeremiah Stevenson was arrested, he appears to be black.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

25. Damarcus Walker was a 44 year old black man who was beaten with a baseball bat outside of a local Wal-Mart by a 21 year old White man named Levi Arnold. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: White

26. Jacqueline Coley was a 58 year old black woman. She was severely beaten in 2017 and succumbed to her injuries three years later. No arrests have been made. I don’t generally like counting people who died in a year from injuries in a prior year but 2020 is when she made the list.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

27. Allen Lamar Ruffin, a 31 year old black man, found shot to death in July. No arrests, no suspects identified. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

28. Frederick Sanders was shot and killed at a house party, no arrests have been made and I couldn’t find anything about his race.

Victim Race: unknown

Killer Race: unknown

29. Angel May Carter, a 19 year old White woman, was shot in a motel and her abusive boyfriend, 40 year old black man Thomas Jermaine Jackson, was arrested for her murder. Why her family tolerated a 19 year old girl being in a physically abusive relationship with a 40 year old man twice her age is a mystery.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: black

30. Antonyo Stephens, a 42 year old black man was murdered in a home in August. A 27 year old black man named Markquiel Derrick was arrested for his murder.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

31. Jonathan Darrel Wade, stabbed to death in August was a 32 year old black man. No arrests have been made.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

32. John Ray Deremer, a 57 year old White man, was shot to death and a 21 year old mestizo named Jesse Echavarria has been arrested in his murder.

Victim Race: White

Killer Race: mestizo

33. Justin Cedric Dawson shot to death in August. He was a 25 year old black man, no arrests have been made

Victim Race: black 

Killer Race: unknown

34. Stephon Holland was a 22 year old black man (looks to be mixed race based on photos of him and his family). A 38 year old black man named Darryl “Antone” Davis has been arrested for his murder.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

35. Nichole Y. Paschall was shot in 2019 and succumbed to her injuries in 2020. She was a 49 year old black woman, no arrests have been made. I didn’t have her in my 2019 list so I will include her in 2020.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

36. Twilah Newmon-Thomas was a 44 year old black woman shot to death in a car. No arrests have been made.

Victim Race: black 

Killer Race: unknown

37. James Jeffery Hines was a 53 year old man shot to death in September. I couldn’t find definitive information on his race. A 59 year old black man named Eric Tate was arrested for his murder.

Victim Race: unknown

Killer Race: black

38. Toma Davis, an 89 year old black man was shot to death, apparently by his step-son Hawatheven L. Davis, a 57 year old black man who then turned the gun on himself in what appears to be a murder-suicide.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

39. Emoni Milynn Martin was a 19 year old black woman shot to death in October. Ronald Williams, a black man, was arrested for her murder in what appears to be a domestic dispute turned deadly. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: black

40. Tionna Rogan, an 18 year old black woman, was murdered in October. No arrests have been made.

Victim Race: black 

Killer Race: unknown 

41. Elgin Markeith Davis, a 34 year old black man was shot to death in October. No arrests have been made. Mr. Davis apparently leaves behind at least 9 children. 

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown 

42. Shamon L. Little was the sole murder in November. Little was a 21 year old male, I couldn’t find a picture of him but based on his name I will assume he was a black male. No arrests have been made.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

43. Hakeem Omer Cage was the final homicide of 2020, a 23 year old black male. A 17 year old has been arrested in his shooting death but was not named. It is likely the shooter was black but I can’t verify that.

Victim Race: black

Killer Race: unknown

All in all a pretty ugly year for murder in Fort Wayne. Not quite one per week but that is still a lot for this generally fairly safe city.

What does the information above tell us about race and murder in Fort Wayne, Indiana?

Looking at the data of all 43 murders we see some patterns. Note that in the case of Mon Ong/Brooke Wendel I am lumping them together with one Asian and two black perps and two men were arrested in the murder of Jaden Diaz Lee Nelson so the total number of perpetrators will be more than the total number of murders.

Of the 43 murders in Fort Wayne/Allen County, Indiana in 2020 this is how it breaks down….

Of the 43 victims:

White: 11

black: 25

Asian: 1

Mestizo: 2

Unknown: 4

The killers:

White: 5

black: 18

Asian: 2

Mestizo: 4

Unknown: 16

It isn’t surprising to have so many unknowns, many murders in every city are never solved by the police. When we look only at murders with at least suspects or better yet arrests…

From a percentage viewpoint, in 2021 we see:

Whites are 25% of murder victims and 11% of all killers, 17% of known killers.

 Blacks are 58% of murder victims and 40% of all killers, 62% of known killers.

 Asians are 2% of murder victims and 4% of all killers, 7% of known killers.

 Mestizos are 4% of murder victims and 9% of all killers, 14% of known killers.

How does this compare to Fort Wayne as a whole?

Fort Wayne as a city is 70% White, 15% black. 8% mestizo and 3.3% Asian. Allen County is more White and less black than the city as you would expect, especially with a large Amish population in eastern Allen County. 

Taken together:

Whites are less likely to be murder victims in Fort Wayne, making up 25% of those murdered, and far less likely to be the perpetrator of murder, 17% of known killers versus 70% of the population.

On the other hand, blacks being only 15% of the population nevertheless make up almost 60% of murder victims and 62% of known murderers. I expect that percentage to rise as more cases are solved, this was the case in 2019.

Asians are not a large percentage of the population at only 3.3% but are actually significantly overrepresented as killers thanks to a couple of cases. The Asian population in Fort Wayne is more refugee oriented than in other cities thanks to FW hosting the largest Burmese refugee population in America. Allen County has about as many Burmese as it does Amish.

Mestizos at 8% of the population are underrepresented in murder victims and somewhat overrepresented in known killers. 

Compared to 2019, we see that blacks are less overrepresented in the murderer category. As of my last update, around 84% of known killers were black, a significant difference compared to the national statistics which showed that blacks were the murderers in 56% of cases. There were definitely more White killers in 2020, the only homicide committed by a White male in 2019 didn’t lead to charges because it was self-defense. So lots more murders in 2020, 43 in 2020 versus 30 in 2019. More White killers in 2020 and a lot more White victims. Only two Whites were murdered in 2019 but 11 Whites were murdered in 2020. Asians were not represented at all in 2019 as victims or killers but showed up in 2020 as both with one victim and 2 perps.

Looking at just blacks, there were 24 blacks murdered in 2019 and 25 in 2020 so basically the same. There were 16 known black killers in 2019 and 18 in 2020 so that number is also steady. I was a bit surprised to see that most of the difference in total murders in 2020 was from groups other than blacks, although again we had 4 racially unknown victims and 16 unknown killers which is a big number, only 11 in 2019 were unknown. My gut tells me that the lion’s share of those are black but I can’t confirm that.

The story that Fort Wayne tells is the same story told in every metropolitan area in America: gun violence and especially murder is mostly a black issue. Without the 15% of blacks living in Fort Wayne the city would have seen only a handful of murders the last two years and a fraction of the shootings.

From all indications, 2021 is shaping up to be just as bad as 2020 in terms of gun violence around the country. Remember as always that the people in charge are doing everything in their power to distract you from the real crime problem in American and instead focus you on the phantom menace of White supremacists. 

_{*one recorded 2019 homicide was clearly committed prior to 2019 so even though the coroner counted the death of Ryan Baughman I don’t count it in my statistics}