Father, son skipping Indy a year after 11-year-old hit by bullet shot in air Fourth of July
The 11-year-old was struck in the back by a stray bullet that came from being shot in the air while visiting family in Indianapolis. A year later, Jataevious Ragsdale is thriving, but his father told IndyStar that they're not coming back to Indianapolis this year for the holiday.
"It can happen to anybody. It is really dangerous to fire guns into the air because those bullets are coming back down," Ragsdale told IndyStar. "I was standing right in front of him, and it could have hit any one of us the wrong way."
Ragsdale said his son was lucky because the bullet went right under his skin. They traveled back to Mississippi after spending time at Riley Children's following the shooting, and two weeks later, the father took Jataevious to their local Children's Hospital in Jackson, where the bullet was removed.
'Stop shooting!' 11-year-old boy injured by bullet shot into air Fourth of July
Recovery was easy, but knowing that things could have been worse has been hard.
"I come to Indianapolis every other year to visit my family 'cause that's where I'm from," Ragsdale said. "We're going to do something else this year, but I don't want people to think that this is OK. Don't shoot guns, period, and don't shoot them up in the air."
Jataevious was 1 of 8 people shot on July 4, 2024, prompting Indianapolis Metropolitan Police to address the string of violence a day later. Now, coming off the heels of a violent weekend, where seven people were killed and nine more were shot from Friday to Sunday, public safety officials don't want the upcoming 2025 holiday weekend to be what it was a year ago.
4th of July last year: Indianapolis has violent Fourth of July night. Police use curfew to bust up groups downtown
There were at least 10 shots-fired calls that police responded to on Independence Day last year. One woman found a bullet in the side of her home. Those calls, coupled with eight people being shot, made for nearly 20 calls tied to gunfire in one night.
It's what we hear from police this time of year — what goes up must come down.
On July 1, 2025, ahead of the holiday weekend, city officials laid out their public safety plans for the fireworks display downtown. IMPD Deputy Chief of Operations Tanya Terry also addressed the recent string of homicides, arrests, and shootings with a warning to those who perpetrate violence.
"It's illegal to shoot your firearms in the air," Terry said. "Don't do it. I appreciate everybody's right to bear arms, but let's just put the guns down."
Arthur Ragsdale said his son is now in 7th grade and into basketball. While he's been worried as a father, he's happy the shooting doesn't seem to have a lasting negative psychological impact on Jataevious.
"You'd think he might be scared on the Fourth when he lights fireworks, but he's not even thinking about it," Arthur Ragsdale said. "Last year, in the hospital, I remember he called one of his friends in Mississippi and was saying, 'Dad! Tell him I got shot in the back, he doesn't believe me.' I'm like, 'boy, go sit down,' but he was so blessed."
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