Indiana judge shooting leaves ‘long list’ of potential suspects days into manhunt: defense attorney

A criminal defense attorney says Indiana police will have to work through a “long list of potential suspects” as investigators try to identify the individual who shot a judge and his wife at their home.

Dispatch audio obtained by Fox News Digital shows that the unidentified shooter, who hasn’t been caught by police, allegedly knocked on the door of Judge Steven Meyer and his wife Kimberly Meyer’s home around 2:15 p.m. Sunday, then fired gunshots through the door. Before firing the gun, the suspect said, “We have your dog,” according to the audio.

Steven sustained an arm injury and Kimberly had a hip injury. They were taken to a hospital where they are recovering, and are in stable condition, according to the Lafayette Police Department.

While police did not say how many shots were fired, shell casings were found at the scene. The Lafayette Police Department, Indiana State Police, Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office, West Lafayette Police Department and the FBI are involved in the investigation.

INDIANA JUDGE IN BIZARRE NATALIA GRACE CASE SHOT IN HOME ATTACK AS POLICE HUNT SUSPECT

“I am so grateful for the outpouring of support from friends, the community, court colleagues, and law enforcement,” Judge Meyer said in a statement Wednesday in his first public comments since the shooting. “I want to express my heartfelt thanks to my medical team. I am receiving excellent care and I am improving. Kim is also deeply appreciative for the community support, and she too is healing.

“I want the community to know that I have strong faith in our judicial system. This horrific violence will not shake my belief in the importance of peacefully resolving disputes. I remain confident we have the best judicial system in the world, and I am proud to be a part of it.”

One of the most prominent cases Judge Meyer presided over involved then-married couple Kristine and Michael Barnett, who adopted Natalia Grace, a refugee from Ukraine who was accused of pretending to be a child.

In 2019, the Barnetts were charged with several counts of neglecting a dependent because of Grace’s disability. The Barnetts claimed that Grace, who was diagnosed with dwarfism, lied about being a child and accused her of terrorizing their family. 

The Barnetts said Grace’s disability gave her a small frame that hid her age without additional medical testing. The Ukrainian hospital where Grace was born also lost her birth certificate, making it difficult to find out her true age.

According to Investigation Discovery’s documentary, “The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: Natalia Speaks,” Michael claimed that Grace was violent toward his family.

“She threatened to stab my sons, drag their bodies outside and bury them underneath the deck,” Michael said. “I promise you, within five years someone is dead.”

Grace accused the couple of abusing her while she lived with them, and claimed she was once given three-times the prescribed dose of her heart medication.

Judge Meyer presided over Michael’s jury trial in 2022 when he was found not guilty, and he also dismissed Kristine’s charges in 2023. During Michael’s trial, Meyer ruled that Grace was only to be referred to as an adult in the courtroom, according to The Exponent.

Grace hasn’t been named a suspect in Sunday’s shooting and hasn’t been charged with any crime.

Meyer also presided over several recent violent criminal cases.

In July, Meyer sentenced Deonta Johnson to 32 years in prison after his girlfriend’s 5-year-old son found his gun and fatally shot Johnson’s 1-year-old son at their apartment in Lafayette, Indiana, according to the Journal & Courier.

SUSPECTED GUNMAN UTTERED 4 WORDS BEFORE SHOOTING INDIANA JUDGE AND WIFE: DISPATCH AUDIO

“The defendant’s children were exposed to this cartoon showing gun violence,” Meyer said before sentencing. “This is the kind of environment you were raising your children in… It’s disturbing.”

At the time of the incident, the 5-year-old child tested positive for cocaine and the deceased 1-year-old tested positive for marijuana.

Meyer also presided over the trial of Travion Antoine Barbee, who was sentenced to 85 years in prison after being convicted of two counts of attempted murder and one count of being a habitual offender. Prosecutors accused Barbee of stabbing Caycie Stantz and Joseph Hughes on Jan. 10, 2023, according to Star City News.

Barbee had prior convictions in Indiana and Illinois for charges of burglary, domestic battery and weapon possession.

Criminal defense attorney Jonna Spilbor told Fox News Digital many defendants first point blame at judges after they are sentenced or found guilty, creating a laundry list of potential suspects.

“People blame the judge probably before they blame anybody else, before they blame a prosecutor, before they blame their own attorney, they probably blame the judge. So there could be a long list of potential suspects in this shooting,” Spilbor said. “If there is a ruling that really turns somebody’s life upside down, whether they go to jail, whether that is for a long time, or whether they’re divested of all their assets in a divorce or whatever you have, you now have a suspect.”

Spilbor said the suspect clearly had a plan to make the Meyers’ open their door.

“Now, I don’t know whether the dog was actually lost or whether that was just a pure ruse in order to get somebody to open a door because in this day and age, especially if you’re a judge, you don’t just open the door for anybody,” she said.

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Commenting on the Barnett case Meyer presided over, Spilbor said the public’s view of Grace had completely flipped.

“In the beginning of the case, the tide was definitely different and turned once it was determined that there was evidence to support the fact that Natalia was actually much older than everybody thought she was at first. In the initial phases, as you can imagine, whenever you have cases that deal with young children in any sort of neglect, any sort of abuse, the community support behind the child is evident and as it should be,” she said.

Fox News Digital’s Julia Bonavita contributed to this report.