Thread: Pastor's Pregnant Wife Raped & Killed in Indianapolis Home Invasion

Pastor's Pregnant Wife Killed in Indianapolis Home Invasion

by Alastair Jamieson, Shamar Walters and Tim Stelloh

Pregnant Mom Killed in Home Invasion 2:17

The pregnant wife of an Indiana pastor died after a single gunshot to the head Tuesday, the Marion County Coroner's Office told NBC News.
The death of Amanda Blackburn, who was also mother to a 1-year-old baby, has been ruled a homicide, and authorities believe that she died during a home invasion.

Amanda Blackburn and her husband Davey, a church pastor who described her as "beautiful, gracious." Davey Blackburn
Blackburn, 28, was taken to Indiana University Health Methodist Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. The 1-year-old, who was at home at home in his crib at the time of the apparent home invasion, was found unharmed, NBC affiliate WTHR reported.
A statement from the Resonate Church, where Blackburn's husband Davey is pastor, said that he discovered his wife's body after returning home from the gym. "Someone had broken into his home and his wife Amanda had suffered a gunshot wound," the statement said.



In a statement posted on the church's website, the pastor described his wife as "a beautiful, gracious, loving woman of God."
"I have not only lost my ministry partner and support but also my very best friend," the statement said, adding: "Amanda made it her life's calling to love and serve everyone she knew."
An Indianapolis police spokesman told NBC News that Davey Blackburn has been "ruled out completely and is definitely not a person of interest in this investigation."
"I hold firm to the belief that God is still good, that he takes our tragedy and turns it into triumph" The church launched a support fund for the family. Its website said the couple moved to the area in 2012.
It added: "Please join us in prayer for our pastor, his son Weston and their entire family during these hard days ahead. We have extremely heavy hearts and although we are hurting tremendously, we are still hoping and believing that great things are still yet to come."
Police say a nearby house was earlier hit by a burglar who took electronics and other valuables, NBC station WTHR reported, although it was not yet clear if that break-in was connected to Amanda Blackburn's death.
"For something like that, such a brazen attack," neighborhood crime watch captain Ryan McConnell told the station. "It makes you scared. You don't want to live in fear."
Pastor Blackburn's statement added: "I hold firm to the belief that God is still good, that he takes our tragedy and turns it into triumph."

Davey and Amanda Blackburn Davey Blackburn / Resonate Church

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/...vasion-n461941

Please help us monitor this terrible case and post info to us here if any arrests are made. We know right away if this woman was killed by illegal aliens or minority thugs stirred to violence against whites by the biased media, Black Lies Matter, and Farrakhan who has asked black men to hunt and kill whites.

W

'We know who killed her': Police reveal suspect who killed pastor's 28-year-old pregnant wife is a short black male captured on cameras around the neighborhood

• Suspect was described as a black male with a medium complexion and slight build, standing between five-foot-four and five-foot-nine, police said
• In neighborhood surveillance footage, he was wearing light-colored pants and a two-toned hooded sweatshirt
• Amanda Blackburn, 28, was shot in her Indianapolis home on Tuesday
• She was trying to defend her son from a burglar at the time, police said
• Her husband, Resonate Church pastor Davey Blackburn, found his wife wounded at 8.30am Tuesday after returning from the gym
• The suspect is still on the loose and police are offering a $1,000 reward to anyone with information
• Legal experts said that anyone connected to the crime could be charged with more than Amanda's murder because she was 12 weeks pregnant
• Police announced that Davey Blackburn is not a suspect, with surveillance footage proving he was at the gym at the time of the shooting

By KELLY MCLAUGHLIN and REGINA F. GRAHAM FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 11:25 EST, 13 November 2015 | UPDATED: 18:37 EST, 13 November 2015

A suspect in the murder of a pregnant mother who was shot in the head during a home invasion in Indianapolis on Tuesday was captured on neighborhood surveillance footage after the killing, police said.

‘We know who killed her,’ Indianapolis Police Capt Craig Converse said at a press conference on Friday on the murder of 28-year-old Amanda Blackburn. ‘We have a picture, but not a name.’

The suspect was described as a black male, with a medium complexion and slight build, standing between five-foot-four and five-foot-nine, police said. In surveillance footage he was seen wearing light-colored pants and a two-toned hooded sweatshirt.

Converse said that the suspect was captured on CCTV standing outside of the Blackburns' home.

Blackburn was shot in her Indianapolis home as she tried to defend herself and her one-year-old son, Weston, from a burglar on Tuesday morning, police said.

Scroll down for video



Amanda Blackburn (right), 28, was found wounded on Tuesday at about 8.30am by her husband Davey, pictured left, was the couple hold their one-year-old son, Weston


Tragic: Amanda Blackburn, pictured here with her husband Davey on the couple's wedding day, was pronounced dead on Thursday after being shot during a burglary at her Indianapolis home



Davey Blackburn (left) has been ruled out as a suspect, as time-stamped surveillance footage from a local LA Fitness shows him arriving and leaving the gym the morning of the murder

She was 12 weeks pregnant when she was taken off life support on Wednesday. The coroner’s office pronounced her dead on Thursday.
Her husband, Resonate Church pastor Davey Blackburn was at the gym when the shooting took place and came home to find his wounded wife at about 8.30am.

Indianapolis Metro Police Sgt Kendale Adams told ABC News that the husband and any other family members are not suspects.
Time-stamped surveillance footage from a local LA Fitness shows Davey Blackburn arriving and leaving the gym that morning, according to investigators who obtained the footage.

Police said they could release a photo of the suspect late on Friday. He remains on the loose, and police are offering a $1,000 reward to anyone with information about who he is.

Adams confirmed that part of the investigation is focusing on whether this incident is related to other recent break-ins in the area.

Three hours before Blackburn was found, a home close to the victim's was burglarized, and electronics and other valuables were taken, according to WTHR.

Earlier in the investigation police said they were not sure if the incidents were connected.

Officials said there was no sign of forced entry into the Blackburns' home, but they believe that the killer may have seen an opportunity to enter the home when Davey Blackburn left for the gym at about 6am.

Surveillance footage shows a person wearing a hooding walking around the neighborhood and trying to conceal his or her face. Neighbors reported seeing the individual, as well as a dark SUV in the area. They also reported hearing shots.

'To the individual who committed this crime: You are not as good as you think you are,' Eric Hench said at the press conference on Friday. 'We will find you.'

Hench, who called the crime 'heinous', noted that evidence was left behind at the scene of the crime.


Amanda Blackburn was 12 weeks pregnant when she was taken off life support on Wednesday. The coroner's office pronounced her dead on Thursday. Above she is pictured with her husband, Davey, on Facebook



Neighbors of the Blackburns said that they don't live in the 'type of neighborhood' where incidents like Tuesday's home invasions usually occur
Police chief Rick Hite encouraged people to come forward with information about the killer.

'You commit a heinous murder like this - you don't get a second chance,' he said on Friday. 'We're coming to get you. This is not acceptable.'

Legal experts told the Indianapolis Star that anyone connected to the crime could be charged with more than her murder because Amanda Blackburn was pregnant.

A murder conviction in Indiana could send a person to prison for 45 to 60 years, and some are punishable to life in prison or the death penalty.

Legal experts claim that depending on whether the killer knew Mrs Blackburn was pregnant or how far along she was, additional charges could come into play.

A state statute passed in 2009 allows the state to seek harsher penalties in cases in which the victims are pregnant. It could add six to 20 years to a sentence, Indianapolis attorney Jack Crawford told the Star.

Friends and family told WYFF that Blackburn, along with her husband, had recently announced that she was pregnant with the couple's second child.

Blackburn was the daughter of the lead pastor at First Baptist Church in Elkhart, Indiana. She and her husband moved from South Carolina to Indianapolis in 2012 to establish the independent Resonate Church.

Services at the church will take place on Sunday as usual, but Davey Blackburn said that the community will gather at 5pm at Traders Point Christian Church to celebrate his wife’s life.

"We are going to worship, share the gospel through sharing Amanda’s story, laugh together and cry together. Her heart would be that you invite as many people as possible to this celebration service that do not know the Lord," he wrote on Facebook.

Resonate Church is tailored to young people, and it releases sermon videos to its website each week that cover topics such as relationships and what the bible says about sex.

On October 27, the Blackburns spoke about their own relationship, telling viewers that they met on a blind date.

Amanda’s sister was dating Davey’s best friend and they went to a concert featuring the Christian band Hawk Nelson.
They were attending different colleges at the time, but Davey was on his fall break and spent all of his free time with Amanda.

The day before Davey returned to school, he and Amanda had a milkshake drinking contest, which Amanda lost, according to the Indianapolis Star.

‘You shot milkshake out of your nose,’ Davey said in the video while looking at Amanda. ‘And that’s when I knew that I had met the girl I was going to marry.’

Amanda said that the couple ‘had a really great honeymoon’ and that they were ‘so in love’.

Prior to getting married, they had been dating long distance and only spent time together in periods of about three weeks at a time, so the couple went to counseling to learn how to communicate.



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The suspect is still on the loose and police are offering a $1,000 reward to anyone with information. Officers are still investigating the incident



Blackburn was shot in the head while trying to protect her and Davey Blackburn's one-year-old son Weston (pictured with the couple) from home intruders, police said



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The Blackburns had recently announced that Amanda was 12 weeks pregnant with their second child

‘When you're dating and so in love you can forget about all the conflict or the things that might annoy you,’ Amanda said in the video. ‘But once you get married, those things become a really big deal.’

In another sermon, Davey Blackburn described the purity pledge his wife took when she was a teen, where she agreed not to even kiss a man before she was married. She was true to her claim.

‘Do you know how much that meant to me?’ he said in the sermon. ‘From that moment that I kissed her I knew there was going to be a special bond inside of God's plan for us.’

Resonate Church posted a statement on Facebook mourning Blackburn's death and hundreds of people on social media sent prayers toward the family, according to KHOU.

Davey Blackburn posted a statement on his church's website thanking everyone for the support.

The statement read: 'It's impossible to communicate all the emotions my heart has been forced to process. My wife was such a beautiful, gracious, loving woman of God.

'I have not only lost my ministry partner and support but also my very best friend. There is no way to prepare yourself for circumstances like these.

'As deeply as I am hurting I am hopeful and confident that good things will come of this. I rest in the truth of Romans 8:28 that God works all things together for the good of those who love Him and who are called according to His purpose.



The couple moved from South Carolina to Indianapolis in 2012 to establish the independent church, Resonate Church, where Davey is a pastor

'Thank you for understanding my desire to take these next few days to continue to grieve for Amanda Grace.

'My focus right now is to let The Lord minister to my heart as I continue to shepherd little Weston's. I'll be taking this time to focus on being a great follower of Jesus, dad, family member, and pastor to our growing church.

'Amanda made it her life's calling to love and serve everyone she knew. Even more, she has made it her life's mission to see as many people as possible come to know Jesus as their personal Savior.

'I know that in her death and legacy even more people will come to a saving faith in Christ. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt her desire for me would be to continue what we've started here in Indy.

'I hold firm to the belief that God is still good, that He takes our tragedy and turns it into triumph, and that the best truly is yet to come.'
Resonate church has organized a donation page to help pay for Blackburn's funeral and medical fees.

Neighbor Reginald Townsel told KHOU that their street isn't in the 'type of neighborhood' where a shooting would occur and that the Blackburns 'didn't deserve that'.

Another neighbor, Becky Vandenburgh, said called the shooting 'very scary'.

'It's just horrible what happened,' she said. 'They were great people, really loving.'

It is unknown if Blackburn's organs are being donated.



Davey Blackburn posted a statement on his Resonate Church's website earlier this week thanking everyone for the support



He said he's taking the time 'to focus on being a great follower of Jesus, dad, family member, and pastor to our growing church'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz3rTlav5wb
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SUSPECT IN INDIANA PASTOR’S WIFE’S MURDER CAUGHT ON VIDEO, POLICE SAY

BY ABC News Radio | November 13, 2015


Courtesy Blackburn Family

(INDIANAPOLIS) — Police have surveillance footage of the suspect that they believe shot a pastor’s wife in the head during a home invasion in Indiana, authorities said Friday.

The Indianapolis police and various law enforcement representatives gave an update this morning on the search for Amanda Blackburn’s killer.

On Tuesday morning, shortly before Blackburn was killed in her home, there was a burglary that took place two doors down, said Capt. Craig Converse, who heads the police department’s homicide division.

Investigators have determined that the suspects went into the neighbor’s house at 5:30 a.m. and Blackburn’s husband, Pastor Davey Blackburn, is seen leaving his home at 6:11 a.m. to go to a gym.

“They saw an opportunity to burglarize another home,” a law enforcement official said.

A neighbor reported hearing shots fired between 6:45 a.m. and 6:55 a.m. and surveillance footage from the neighborhood that has been collected by police shows a man leaving Blackburn’s house and driving away in an SUV, police said. Authorities have yet to make the surveillance footage public.

“We know the person standing outside the home is the subject that murdered Amanda,” Converse said.

The suspect has been described as a man with slim to medium build whose height could range from 5’4″ to 5’9″ and was seen wearing a two-tone hoodie sweatshirt on the day of the murder.

Police are urging associates, friends and relatives of the suspect to notify investigators and help the case.

“It is a heinous crime,” one law enforcement officer said. “This individual does not belong walking in free society.”
The suspects are believed to have taken televisions and laptop computers from the first house that was burglarized that morning so police will be attempting to track those items as well.

Converse said that the Blackburns’ dog greeted investigators when they arrived at the home, and the couple’s young son had been in the house at the time of the incident, though he was upstairs in his crib.

http://kticradio.com/abc_national/su...abcid35533519/

The suspect has been described as a man with slim to medium build whose height could range from 5’4″ to 5’9″ and was seen wearing a two-tone hoodie sweatshirt on the day of the murder.

Please notice that the above report intentionally left of the race of the suspect as he was identified by the Daily Mail. What else are they hiding to from the public to avoid a "backlash"?

What a horrific sad tragedy.
~~~

Emily Pace, Ebone Monet
5:04 PM, Nov 14, 2015


copyright 2015 Scripps Media, Inc.

INDIANAPOLIS -- As police work to track down Amanda Blackburn's killer, community members took to the streets Saturday to pass out flyers.

The pregnant mother was murdered in her northwest side home Tuesday morning, and neighbors said they have not felt safe since.

Neighbors said they are frightened and sad, but also vigilant.

They came together to hand out Crime Stoppers flyers. The flyers ask "Who killed Amanda Blackburn?"

Police said the 28-year-old pregnant mother was murdered in her home by someone who was likely trying to burglarize the home.

Police said the murder is likely connected to a burglary that happened about two hours earlier just a few houses down.

Police say they have seen who killed Blackburn, but they don’t know their name, since it was from a surveillance camera.

The person police are looking for is a black man with medium-to-light complexion, slim-to-medium build, between 5-feet-4-inches and 5-feet-9-inches tall. He was wearing light pants with a two-toned hoodie -- the jacket part was suede and the hood was lighter.

The alleged killer drove a dark-colored SUV and was seen on video leaving the area. Multiple TVs were stolen, and believed to be transported in that SUV.

Police haven’t released the photos or videos of the suspect, but are asking for anybody who knows anything to call 317-262-TIPS (8477). Police said they will release the photos of the suspect in the "near future."

http://www.theindychannel.com/news/l...ok-for-answers

A black man came into this all white neighborhood, broke into this home, and slaughtered this young pregnant mother and wife. How could hatred not be a part of such an equation? How could we not question the messages of hatred we see being broadcast all around America these days being a possible factor in such killings?

Why is America starting to look like South Africa where blacks kill white farmers out of sheer ethnic hatred and animosity?

W

Just when you thought this story could not get anymore horrific!

--

Sources: Amanda Blackburn was sexually assaulted

Posted: Thursday, November 19, 2015 9:37 AM EST Updated: Friday, November 20, 2015 5:46 AM EST By Steve Jefferson, WTHR Crimebeat reporterConnect





Amanda Blackburn
IMPD released images of a suspect Monday night.

INDIANAPOLIS - Metro police spoke with four persons of interest as they continue to investigate the murder of an Indianapolis mother.
In a statement Thursday, IMPD said, "Investigators continue to follow up on all investigative leads in the murder of Amanda Blackburn. We continue to talk with individuals who may have some knowledge of the case."
One of the people interrogated by police Thursday, 21-year-old Jalen Watson, was arrested on a parole violation after he spoke with police.
Blackburn was found shot in the head inside her home a week ago last Tuesday in what police believe was an attempted burglary. She died the next day from her injuries, leaving behind her husband, Pastor Davey Blackburn with the Resonate Church, and a young son. Amanda Blackburn was about 12 weeks pregnant with the couple's daughter.
Police believe the murder came after a second burglary in the northwest Indianapolis subdivision. Eyewitness News has learned someone used one of the 28-year-old mother's bank cards at a gas station at W. 71st Street and Michigan Road. There is also surveillance video from an ATM of someone using Amanda's bank card.
Crime scene investigators processed the Blackburns' home for evidence twice.
"To the individual who committed this crime, you are not as good as you think you are...got away with it, but you left something behind and we will find you, we are coming to get you," IMPD Asst. Commander Eric Hench said at a news conference last week.
Although it hasn't been confirmed by IMPD, several sources close to the investigation say DNA evidence could play a major role in identifying Amanda's killer. Eyewitness News has learned that during the burglary, Amanda Blackburn not only put up a fight, but tragically, was also sexually assaulted.
The Blackburns' neighbors in the Woods of North Kessler welcomed the news that detectives were making progress. While many neighbors remain anxious, they say every step forward by detectives is a step in the right direction.
"Days can feel like weeks at times, but we're patient and we're going to see this through and we have a lot of energy to see this through," said neighborhood crime watch captain Ryan McConnell. "But we're excited to hear anything, but we try not to get ahead of ourselves, too, because it's not just this case we're concerned about, we're concerned about the future of our city as well."
McConnell repeatedly praised IMPD and the work of the homicide unit in working to solve the case. He says this horrific situation has made a tight neighborhood even tighter and more determined to fight crime.

http://www.wthr.com/story/30558459/p...ackburn-murder

Ive updated the title on this tracking discussion to...

Pastor's Pregnant Wife Raped & Killed in Indianapolis Home Invasion

I agree that this is a horrible crime, but after reading all the articles, I've yet to find a connection to immigration. Just wanted to know if I was missing something? By the way, why are they only offering a $1,000 reward? I would think a larger reward, say $10,000, would go a lot further in tempting someone to come forward.