Lawsuit alleges that Madison County Sheriff's deputy unlawfully killed suspect during 2024 shooting

MADISON COUNTY, Ind. - A new lawsuit alleges that a Madison County Sheriff's deputy unlawfully killed an Indianapolis man in 2024.




Previous reporting on the incident indicates 44-year-old Lataurus Harrison was shot and killed by a Madison County Sheriff's deputy on June 8, 2024.




Police reported that Harrison was in a parked car in a Madison County driveway during the incident. Law enforcement indicated that a deputy shot Harrison because he refused to comply with deputies' commands and pointed a gun at police.




After a review of the shooting, the Madison County Prosecutor's Office indicated that the deputy was justified in his use of deadly force on Harrison. Documentation related to the incident indicates Harrison "disobeyed 26 loud, verbal commands" from law enforcement.




Deputies reported that they issued 18 commands in about 90 seconds. Police asked Harrison to show his hands and get his hands out of his pockets.




Police indicated that they attempted to breach Harrison's vehicle during the incident. Deputies reportedly broke a window on the car Harrison was in because he did not unlock the vehicle.




Law enforcement reported that Harrison raised a black handgun from his pocket as the window of his car was being broken.




During the altercation, one of the deputies reportedly fired 10 shots at the vehicle Harrison occupied. Seven of those shots struck Harrison.




At the time of the shooting, Madison County officials stressed that body-worn cameras did not capture the initial moment Harrison brandished the firearm. Authorities indicated that the gun could, however, be seen "for several frames" when it was raised at deputies.




After the shooting, police recovered a firearm, a box of ammunition and a knife from the vehicle Harrison occupied.




Police reported that the incident began when they attempted to serve an arrest warrant for Harrison. Previous reporting indicates a warrant was out for Harrison's arrest because he had escaped home detention in Indianapolis.




The lawsuit filed on May 31 questions police's recounting of the shooting and claims they were not justified in using deadly force against Harrison.




The complaint Harrison's family lodged against Madison County officials and the deputies involved in the shooting claims Harrison "was simply visiting his mother and sitting in the driveway of her home" before the shooting.




The Harrison family's attorneys allege that the Madison County deputies involved in the shooting visited the home of Harrison's mother on June 8, 2024, because GPS monitoring data indicated that he was at her residence.




The lawsuit also alleges that police began searching the property of Harrison's mother before they notified her of their presence, authority and purpose. Per the complaint, at least three deputies responded to the scene, and two of them went to knock on Harrison's mother's door while the other deputy began searching the property.




The Harrison family's attorneys allege that the deputies' preliminary search of the property helped them determine that Harrison was in a car parked in the driveway. Per the lawsuit, the front door of Harrison's mother's home is accessible without using the driveway.




The lawsuit indicates the deputies "trespassed on (Harrison's mother's) private property by unlawfully entering the driveway owned by (Harrison's mother) without legal authority or right."




According to the complaint, the deputies' alleged improper search tactics were part of an agreement they made before the incident to justify legal violations.




"Defendant Officers further agreed not to take any steps to intervene in any way to stop legal violations, and to falsely justify any legal violations committed in the course of the search or arrest as necessary for officer or public safety."




The lawsuit also claims that "Defendant Officers agreed to take whatever steps necessary to arrest Lataurus Harrison at his mother's home, without regard for her or Lataurus's constitutional rights, the legality of their tactics, or the use of deadly force."




According to the lawsuit, Harrison's mother answered deputies' knock at her door, but they had moved to the driveway before she got to the door. The Harrison family's attorneys claim the deputies left the door and ran toward the car in the driveway because the other deputy searching the property found Harrison in the car.




When Harrison's mother came outside, she asked deputies what was happening. Per the lawsuit, the deputies "refused to tell (Harrison's mother) why they were at her house, on her property, in her driveway, and pointed their guns at her son."




The complaint alleges that the deputies' refusal to clue Harrison's mother in on the situation was part of their agreement to apprehend Harrison, regardless of the legality of their tactics.




The complaint goes on to allege that police gave Harrison inconsistent orders while they surrounded the car he was in. The Harrison family's attorneys allege that police told him to put his hands on the wheel and unlock the car at the same time.




According to the lawsuit, none of the deputies involved in the incident could clearly see what was going on inside the vehicle.




The lawsuit does not dispute that officers entered Harrison's vehicle. The Harrison family's attorneys called the police's entry into the car an escalation of the incident.




The complaint indicates Harrison was holding a phone in his hand during his encounter with police in hopes of documenting the situation. The lawsuit alleges that police unlawfully shot Harrison because "at no point during Lataurus Harrison's encounter with Defendants did he pose an immediate threat of death or serious bodily harm sufficient to justify the use of deadly force."




The lawsuit then claims that the deputies involved in the shooting attempted to cover it up. Per the complaint, the deputies fabricated a story about Harrison pointing a gun at them after the shooting actually happened.




"Defendant Officers' claim that (a defendant deputy) saw Lataurus Harrison pull out a gun was a lie that Defendant Officers, in conspiracy with other officers, came up with after-the-fact to attempt to justify this unlawful shooting."




The Harrison family's attorneys went on to write that "Defendant Officers' accounts to authorities investigating the shooting incident are at odds with, and contradicted by, the truth of what actually occurred."




Per the lawsuit, the deputies involved in the shooting have not been disciplined by Madison County officials, other than being placed on temporary administrative leave after the incident.




The Harrison family's attorneys wrote that Harrison's Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment rights were violated during the incident.




"Defendant Officers violated Lataurus Harrison's constitutional rights, causing him damage by seizing him with the absence of probable cause or reasonable suspicion in violation of the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution."




The lawsuit indicated that the deputies deliberately conspired to deprive Harrison and his mother of their constitutional rights. The Harrison family's attorneys claim "these co-conspirators agreed among themselves to protect one another from liability for depriving Lataurus Harrison and (Harrison's mother) of these rights."




The complaint also claims that the deputy who shot Harrison intentionally inflicted emotional distress on Harrison and his family.




"Defendant Officers' actions, omissions, and conduct, as set forth above, were extreme and outrageous as well as willful and wanton. These actions were rooted in an abuse of power and authority and were undertaken with the intent to cause, or with reckless disregard for the high degree of probability that they would cause, severe emotional distress to Plaintiff."




At the end of the lawsuit, the Harrison family's attorneys requested financial compensation be awarded to the plaintiffs for compensatory damages, attorneys' fees and punitive damages against each of the individual defendants.




Harrison's family issued a statement on his death in the days after the shooting. In the statement, the family asked to see the full versions of the bodycam videos captured during the incidents.




Harrison's family also insinuated that 90 seconds' worth of commands were not enough to de-escalate deputies' interaction with Harrison.




"The family would like to see all body camera footage released," the statement read, "and not just the handpicked body camera footage that does not show a clear picture of the incident, as we were told that was supposed to be released."




FOX59/CBS4 reached out to the Madison County Sheriff's Office for comment on the lawsuit. The sheriff's office issued the following response:




"We will not have a statement on active litigation."





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