Brayden Logan Thomas, 18, 1100 block of E. 1st Street, Greenfield
GREENFIELD — One of the local teenagers involved in last August’s shooting, that left another area teen in the hospital with a gunshot wound to the stomach, is being charged as an adult in Hancock County Circuit Court.
Brayden Logan Thomas, 18, 1100 block of E. 1st Street, Greenfield, has been charged with a Level 3 felony count of aggravated battery when the assault poses a substantial risk of death; a Level 5 felony count of alteration of firearm’s identifying marks, and a Class A misdemeanor charge of dangerous possession of a firearm.
Prosecutor Brent Eaton has worked over the past six months to get the case against the teenager who pulled the trigger moved from juvenile court to adult court and was successful late last week following a wavier hearing.
“The decision to have a juvenile with a case and pursue a wavier into adult court is a serious decision,” Eaton said. “This is one we worked closely with law enforcement on as we want the community to be safe and, in this case, this is what we thought was the right thing to do.”
Thomas’ case was officially opened in Circuit Court on Tuesday, the same day Thomas turned 18 years old. He was scheduled for an official bail review hearing late Thursday afternoon with Judge Scott Sirk after Sirk set a $25,000 cash bond when he officially waived the case to adult court last week.
“We want to keep that bond at $25,000,” Eaton said.
According to a probable cause affidavit, officials from the Greenfield Police Department were flagged down around 4:30 p.m. Aug. 6 in the 800 block of East Main Street by a witness to a shooting. The report states an officer was directed to a 17-year-old juvenile male who had an apparent gunshot entry wound to his right abdomen. The victim was transported for immediate medical attention while officers began an investigation.
Officers learned the shooting took place at a residence in the 1100 block of East First Street, Greenfield. According to the affidavit, upon arrival at the house officials immediately noted a shattered glass pane on an exterior entry door of the residence. The pane was facing the south, with broken glass on the ground, and a small hole in the screen of the door appeared to resemble a bullet hole, officials stated in the report.
Officers stated they gave verbal commands to a male later identified as Thomas, who was 17 at the time, to exit the residence and he did. When officers were clearing the residence, in plain view they observed a handgun with magazines lying on a kitchen counter in the residence, officials said in the report.
Thomas agreed to talk with officials and, according to the affidavit, Thomas stated he had been exchanging text messages with the victim when he saw a vehicle pull up to his residence. Thomas told officials he saw the victim approach the front door with his fists balled up and he began banging on the door. Thomas stated he did not see the victim with any weapons but grabbed a gun from the kitchen counter and aimed it at the center of the door, pulled the trigger, and shot the victim through the front door.
Following the shooting, officials noted in the report that Thomas made two phone calls before calling 911 to report the incident.
As for the victim, who is recovering, officials noted in the report surgery was required to remove approximately four feet of the victim’s intestine due to the damage caused by the gunshot wound.
