Slayings of 2 women, shooting of officer, shock Eastside neighbors

The small, one-story home in Indianapolis' Martindale-Brightwood neighborhood on the Eastside had been home to Julia Morrow for 45 years.

The 84-year-old former Wishard Hospital ward secretary known to neighbors as "Grams" had spent most of her life there. Family members said she could often be found at the nearby Oasis of Hope Baptist Church, of which she had been a member for even longer.

But Morrow's long and contented life was brutally cut short early Friday, when police say 36-year-old Quintico Goolsby killed her and Morrow's 30-year-old granddaughter, Inity Morrow, who had been staying with her for the past 16 years.

The killings happened after one of the women – it's not clear who – called 911 at 7:10 a.m. to report a disturbance at their house in the 2600 block of North Dearborn Street. Police officials said the dispatcher heard screams and things being slammed in the background, followed by silence.

"You know you are going to die," said Julia Morrow's son, Walter Morrow, 65. "But not like that."

Goolsby was shot and killed by Indianapolis Metropolitan Police officer Greg Milburn, who arrived at the house about 45 seconds after the call first came in.

Officials said that when Goolsby saw Milburn outside the house, Goolsby opened fire, hitting Milburn near his abdomen, which was covered by his protective vest. Milburn killed Goolsby, when he returned fire.

Milburn, who joined IMPD in 2002, was taken to Eskenazi Hospital and later released. He will be placed on administrative leave while he recovers from his injuries. IMPD spokesman Lt. Chris Bailey said Milburn's bulletproof vest saved his life.

Family members and neighbors who spent Friday grieving the loss of the Morrows were left with few answers.

The Morrow family told The Indianapolis Star that Inity Morrow had argued with Goolsby last night, before he returned to the house this morning. Her relationship to him, however, was not clear. At about 11 p.m. Thursday — about 8 hours before the shooting — Goolsby posted what would be his final message on his personal Facebook page: "just live n life you."

IMPD officials had yet to release a motive in the shooting Friday.

"There is a connection," said IMPD Chief Rick Hite. "We're unraveling that as we speak."

Family members described Julia Morrow as a helpful presence in the community – a woman who still drove her Cadillac and took neighbors and friends places they needed to go.

She had a habit of taking in younger relatives, like Inity Morrow, and often cooked eggs and French fries — Inity's favorites — for her younger relatives Sunday mornings

"She was a good woman," Walter Morrow said. "I'm not saying that because she was my mother."

Inity Morrow, whom family members called "Pinky," came to live with her grandmother when she was 14. Family members said the younger Morrow often got into trouble. Indiana Department of Correction records indicate she spent some time in prison a few years ago on forgery charges.

But family members said they thought Inity was straightening herself out.

"She was trying to get herself together," said Walter Morrow, her uncle. "Sometimes it's the company you keep."

While the Morrow family didn't know why their relatives became Goolsby's targets, state records show the man had a checkered past. According to Department of Correction data, Goolsby served several stints in prison over the past decade on theft and drug-dealing charges.

He had not been out of prison long since his last sentence when the shootings happened; records show his earliest release date on the latest theft charges was December 2013.

The incident drew more than two dozen officers to the scene and closed down the street, which quickly became a parking lot for crime lab vans and other police vehicles. Just down the street from the flashing lights, though, a group of children played ball in the street as they waited for a school bus.

One woman walking by the homicide scene could be heard sobbing and crying, "Daddy, daddy, daddy."

Onlookers gathered in alleys and vacant lots just outside the crime scene tape, some recoiling in horror when they heard of the two slain women.

Merlean Butts, 68, who has lived for 40 years in the neighborhood where the shooting happened, said gunfire is frequent.

"If you get up every time you hear a gun, you won't get any sleep," Butts said.

LaShonta Matthews, 37, has lived in the neighborhood all her life. She said violence is all too common here. "It happens all the time, sorry to say," she said. "Every other day it's always some type of violence, some type of crime."

Still, IMPD Chief Hite said the neighborhood is a "good community."

"A lot of older people live in this block, and they are disturbed by someone armed with a weapon willing to take on police and also take out two innocent citizens. ... All of us should be outraged," Hite said.

Some of the neighbors held a prayer vigil.

A group of pastors showed up after the shootings to offer prayers. Hite was grateful for their presence.

"This is spiritual warfare," Hite said. "They are praying for peace and praying that people involved in this type of activity will turn their lives around."

The incident marked the second time in a matter of hours that law enforcement officers took fire in Marion County. Earlier, a man in a car being chased by two Indiana State Police troopers leaned out of a passenger-side window and fired at them.

Those officers were unhurt during the chase near 21st Street and Mitthoeffer Road on the Far Eastside. While one person was detained for questioning, no one had been arrested as of about 6:30 a.m. today.

Call Star reporter Bill McCleery at (317) 444-6083. Follow him on Twitter: @BillMcCleery01.