A Hammond man signed a plea this month admitting he stalked and shot a woman in the head.
Devontae Harris, 26, admitted to aggravated battery, a Level 3 felony, according to a plea agreement filed May 9. The deal calls for four years in prison and two on probation. A judge would have to review and accept the plea offer. His sentencing is July 17.
Hammond Police were called at 1:36 p.m. Nov. 23, 2022 to the 6600 block of Alabama Avenue where a woman lay shot on the ground, the affidavit states.
She had a protection order filed against Harris in September, records show. Just two days before the shooting, he came over and left her with a black eye, charges state.
Another man told police he was staying with the woman to protect her and their three-year-old child from Harris, charges state. Harris had beat her in the past, was threatening her, and had a previous domestic battery case against her, the man said and court records show.
The woman told police she went to a grocery store with her child. When they returned, she got a text from Harris asking where she was. She ignored it.
Then, she saw Harris ride by in a gold Chevy Blazer, records show. She yelled for the other man, helping unload groceries, and their child to go inside. Within 15 minutes, two men in ski masks with guns were running toward her. She knew one was Harris, partly from his tattoos, documents state.
As the woman started to scream for the other man, Harris shot her in the head, according to the affidavit. She fell, then standing over her, he started shooting her again, records state. She didn’t know who the other man with Harris was, documents show.
The woman said she thought he shot her 4-5 times, according to the affidavit. Somehow, a bullet had pierced her hand, but not her chest, she said. Previously, Harris had cut off his ankle monitor at the house, she said. Police found it under a grill lid.
The man staying with her said he heard the woman screaming, then two gunshots. He grabbed his gun, then traded fire with the two men before they ran off heading south. Harris had issues with him in the past and they had traded gunfire before in East Chicago, according to court records.
Another time, Harris had also shot at his relative, the man alleged.
