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Indianapolis youth football coach killed in shooting near I-65 in Greenwood

State police said Richard Donnell Hamilton was a passenger in a work van when he was hit by a bullet that came from outside of the van.

GREENWOOD, Ind. — Police said a man riding in a work van on Interstate 65 in Greenwood was killed in a targeted shooting Wednesday night.

A woman was driving the van with the man as her passenger. Indiana State Police said as the van exited I-65 north to County Line Road, another car pulled up beside it, and its occupants shot at the van.

When police arrived at the scene just before 6:30 p.m., they found the man, identified Thursday morning by the Johnson County Coroner's Office as 43-year-old Richard Donnell Hamilton, of Indianapolis, unresponsive in the passenger seat. 

Police said he had injuries consistent with a gunshot wound and was pronounced dead at the scene. The Johnson County coroner determined Hamilton was killed by a single gunshot.

Hamilton was a football coach and president of the Indy Steelers youth football program who was a longtime mentor in the Butler-Tarkington area. He is survived by his wife, three children and grandchildren.

The woman in the van with Hamilton stayed on the scene to speak with investigators.

The suspect or suspects were believed to be inside a car. The victim's van was described as a white work van.

State police closed the exit ramp from I-65 to County Line Road to investigate the shooting.

Detectives worked well into the night to determine how many shots were fired and whether the shooting was motivated by road rage.

"We are going to be investigating this thoroughly and fully, and we are going to try and solve this," ISP Trooper Cameron Bottema said.

Police are hoping someone who may have seen something will step up with information.

"This is not the normal for the south side and Greenwood and this area," Bottema said.

Detectives are asking anyone with dash cameras who were in the area of I-65 and County Line Road in Greenwood between 6:20 and 6:30 p.m. to review their cameras and contact the Indiana State Police at 317-899-8577. 

Anybody with information about this crime can also anonymously report information to Crime Stoppers of Central Indiana at 317-262-TIPS.

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