UPDATE (3/14/2023): Carl Davis was sentenced to 42 years in prison after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter.
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INDIANAPOLIS – An Indianapolis man is behind bars and accused of killing his wife.
Police were called to a home in Butler Tarkington last week and found a woman shot. That victim was rushed to the hospital but later died.
Investigators and the victim’s family quickly confirmed the death of Ashley Bell, who also used the last name Davis, was domestic related.
The 32-year-old mother had allegedly murdered by her husband.
“It’s a tragic situation, not only for us as advocates, but also for families. We don’t want to wake up and see another victim has lost their life to domestic violence,” said Danyette Smith.
Danyette, founder of Silent No More, a group dedicated to raising awareness about domestic violence, claims the issue has been on the rise since last year when the pandemic began.
“Since COVID has arrived, domestic violence has increased drastically,” said Smith.
While the suspect 35-year-old Carl Davis disappeared for more than a week after the shooting, police were able to take him into custody on Thursday.
The reason for the deadly shooting on boulevard remains a mystery, but court records show Davis should not have been on the streets at the time of the killing.
At the time of the deadly shooting, the suspect did have an active warrant for his arrest from a previous domestic violence case.
According to an affidavit filed in November, police were called to the same home after Davis and his wife got into a fight over a cell phone. During that argument, the suspect allegedly pulled out a gun, assaulted the victim, and said, “You’re gonna make me kill you.”
Because domestic violence often escalates in severity, advocates like Danyette encourage all victims to reach out for help before it’s too late.
“We want people know there are resources out there. You don’t have to stay in domestic violence at all,” said Smith.
A bond of $160,000 was put in place for the suspect stemming from the previous domestic violence case, but he will be held without bond pending formal filing of the murder charge.
