Indianapolis, Indiana – The past few weeks in America, the country has seen the likes of police attacked and slain, good Samaritans murdered, and businesses destroyed by the anger and greed from looters and rioters.
Now, a community is coming together to pay tribute to a man who was killed, by trying to do the right thing during the riots.
The Indianapolis, Indiana, community is honoring Chris Beaty, a 38-year-old real estate broker and former Indiana University football player, after he was murdered in riots on May 30. https://t.co/qke4K1ASNi #tcot #RIP
— #ClearFlynnNow ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (@SweetFreedom29) June 9, 2020
A real estate broker and former football player for Indiana University, Chris Beaty was only 38-years-old when he was murdered on May 30th. His final act of doing the right thing was what led to his death.
Witnesses to Beaty’s murder say that he was trying to stop rioters from stealing from some women, with one witness saying some of his last words toward the robbers were the following:
“You don’t need to do this. There’s a better way.”
And then, Beaty was fatally shot.
A candlelight vigil was recently held in honor of Beaty at White River State Park, where both friends and family of the deceased shared fond memories of the time they shared with him. Throughout the streets of Indianapolis, murals and homages of Beaty are emblazoned across various walls to pay respects to the man.
“Such a tragic reason you do a portrait mural of someone.” Just three days after he was murdered in downtown Indianapolis, Chris Beaty is remembered with a mural by artist Andrea Townsend. Read more here: https://t.co/9NOitrsG1R pic.twitter.com/xZoePtudDL
— RTV6 Indianapolis (@wrtv) June 3, 2020
The life that he lived, even up to the moment that he passed away, has spawned the mantra of “live like Chris”.
Another mural in memory of Chris Beaty at Pennsylvania and Vermont. ❤️ #LiveLikeChris #IUFB #96 pic.twitter.com/TioKclrqMg
— Hoosier Huddle (@Hoosier_Huddle) June 6, 2020
A GoFundMe page has been established in the wake of Beaty’s death to create the Chris Beaty Memorial Scholarship Fund, which was organized by his nephew to benefit new students coming into Indiana University & Cathedral High School. Jared Thomas wrote the following about his uncle within the fundraiser’s page:
“Chris was someone who always put others before himself. He truly was one-of-a-kind, with a giant heart filled with love for everyone he met, consistently working to break down racial barriers. We encourage everyone to live like Chris – to love others boldly, to stand up for what’s right, to live every day to the fullest.”
While it’s amazing to see that Beaty is serving as an inspiration to others to live in a manner that is about doing what’s right, it’s painful to know that he was torn from his family and friends because of him doing just that.
These riots have seen simply too much senseless destruction, violence, and death.
In St. Louis, Missouri, police say they’ve captured a 24-year-old man and charged him with the murder of a retired St. Louis police captain.
The 77-year-old was found on the sidewalk with a gunshot wound outside Lee’s Pawn and Jewelry on June 2.
Retired police captain murdered in front of pawn shop in cold blood
David Dorn also served as Moline Acres chief after retiring from the St. Louis force.
We’ve got more details on that below.
But first – the latest.
On Sunday, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Kim Gardner announced that Stephan Cannon, 24, has been arrested in connection with the murder.
He’s been charged with first-degree murder, first-degree robbery, first-degree burglary and three counts of armed criminal action as well as being a felon in possession of a firearm, KDSK reported.
Police said they have surveillance footage showing a Pontiac G6 pull up alongside the pawn shop. Charging documents say a number of people got out of the car and broke into the store.
KDSK reported that the video then showed Cannon exiting the store and walking towards the Pontiac G6 just before Dorn arrived.
At that point, Cannon was seen coming around the corner of the store with a gun in his hand.
“It is apparent from the surveillance that at the time the shots were fired, Cannon was the only person standing at that corner,” charging documents said.
The documents state that multiple plumes of smoke were seen coming from the area where only Cannon was standing.
“Once Dorn has been shot and falls to the ground, Cannon can be seen approaching the door to the pawn shop,” charging documents said.
Police said that at Cannon’s home, they recovered a television that was stolen from the pawn shop.
Cannon confessed he was inside the pawn shop that night. He also said he cut his hair to change his appearance after he saw his photograph being distributed.
He’s currently being held without bond.
In the meantime, there are images of a total of six more people still circulating that police are presumably still searching for in connection with the murder.
Now police have released surveillance footage from inside Lee’s Pawn and Jewelry, which is located at 4123 Martin Luther King Drive.
The footage shows seven people crawling one after another beneath a security gate into the destroyed store.
In the footage, you can see that at least two men in the group are armed.
In a still shot from the video, you can see as one of the men points a handgun toward the door – who we now know is the man arrested.
The seven people are considered “persons of interest” in Dorn’s killing.
Dorn’s widow spoke with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch – which, it’s worth noting, hasn’t exactly been a supportive media outlet of law enforcement.
She said that the retired officer was a close friend of the owner of the shop. Dorn worked there sometimes, and his gig included responding to burglar alarms.
He was murdered there during a night of widespread vandalism and looting which saw more than 75 businesses across the city get hit.
CrimeStoppers is offering a reward up to $46,000 for information that leads to an arrest in the case. The hotline is 1-866-371-8477 (TIPS). Callers can remain anonymous.
Here’s the full backstory from earlier this week, in case you missed it:
—
The debauchery has officially come full-circle following riots relating to the death of George Floyd.
This time, it was a retired police captain who was gunned down and left to die.
A true public servant. Protecting & serving all the way to the end. None of us who knew you are surprised you went out fighting at Lee’s Pawn this morning. God speed my friend. #DavidDorn pic.twitter.com/i9X7q9hKIc
— Tim Fitch (@ChiefTimFitch) June 2, 2020
The aftermath of the murder of 77-year-old David Dorn was reportedly broadcast live on Facebook during the early morning hours of June 2nd, outside of Lee’s Pawn & Jewelry at 4123 Martin Luther King Drive.
Police say that Dorn was shot in the torso at approximately 2:30 a.m. that morning. Various publications have reported that Dorn’s actual murder was live cast online, but that is not the case apparently.
The live cast heavily reported on was that of someone discovering his body after the shooting.
Law Enforcement Today located the video where an unidentified young man happens upon the deceased body of Dorn. The video starts with the young man driving down the street, and seeing the body of Dorn lying on the sidewalk.
RIP #DavidDorn anyone condoning the looting and violence is part of the problem. It’s time for us as a nation to truly start having conversations. This man was a 77 year old retired African American cop trying to hold off looters from stealing TV’s. This is absolutely crazy.
— 🐬 Trate121 🐬 (@MayitoQuintero) June 2, 2020
You can hear the person on the video say the following when he sees the body of Dorn:
“Oh my God cuz, no cuz, come on cuz. Not the old head bro.”
The driver of the vehicle, who is recording wants to make his way over to the pawn shop, where Dorn’s body laid, and the vehicle passenger was warning the driver to not get out of the car. The driver responded:
“Come on cuz, that’s somebody’s granddad…give me my thumper.”
The video continues from the perspective of the driver, and he appears to be holding some type of gun, which a “thumper” is a term often used for a firearm. While standing over the deceased body of Dorn, the person taking the video begins to shout at those nearby:
“Over some TVs man?! For real! This is somebody’s granddaddy cuz.”
A group nearby says something inaudible to the person filming, in which the person recording responds with:
“Fuck you n*gga, the fuck you trying to do? You killed this man over some TVs cuz.”
The video in question is difficult to watch, as not only it portrays the brutal aftermath of the riots and looting in St. Louis, but also from the emotion and anger in the young man’s voice seeing the result of a senseless murder.
Our team at Law Enforcement Today has chosen not to show the video out of respect for the family.
The Ethical Society of Police of St. Louis stated the following about the murder of Dorn:
“He was murdered by looters at a pawnshop. He was the type of brother that would’ve given his life to save them if he had to. Violence is not the answer, whether it’s a citizen or officer.”
Dorn had spent 38 years in law enforcement with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, from 1969 up until 2007 when he retired. It was said that Dorn was familiar with the owners of the pawn shop that he was murdered in front of, and would often respond to alarm calls even in his retirement.
Sadly, that latest alarm call that he responded to on June 2nd led to him being murdered.
A sign was posted in front of the scene where Dorn was murdered that read the following:
“Y’all killed a black man because ‘they’ killed a black man??? Rest in peace.”
Sign of the times on the front of Lee’s Pawn & Jewelry on the North Side of #StLouis, hours after looters shot and killed retired police captain #DavidDorn early on June 2. The killing was apparently broadcast on Facebook Live. pic.twitter.com/U0Ksc0X35H
— McPherson (@McPherSTL) June 2, 2020
The wording on the sign posted in front of Lee’s Pawn & Jewelry are some of the hardest hitting words that are indicative of what has become of these riots.
Police have not identified any suspects in the killing of Dorn and are currently offering a $10,000 reward for anyone who has information on who the suspects involved may be.
This man’s life mattered, and he put his life on the line until the very end for what was right.
This man’s life was taken because criminals wanted to loot and riot, under the guise of this now heavily manipulated movement ongoing.
This man deserved better.
_
Want to make sure you never miss a story from Law Enforcement Today? With so much “stuff” happening in the world on social media, it’s easy for things to get lost.
Make sure you click “following” and then click “see first” so you don’t miss a thing! (See image below.) Thanks for being a part of the LET family!
