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Bond denied for Michigan City teen after allegedly shooting woman in carjacking

A judge denied bond Thursday for a 17-year-old Michigan City teen charged with shooting a woman while stealing her car.

The Post-Tribune is not naming him, because he is still a minor. He was charged July 1 as an adult with attempted murder and robbery.

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Defense lawyer Kurt Earnst asked for the teen to be released with conditions like a no-contact order for the victim and GPS monitoring. He later told Judge Natalie Bokota the teen’s family couldn’t afford bail, even if his current $8,500 cash bond was cut.

Deputy Prosecutor Shannon Phillips said it was “incredibly violent” crime — he shot a woman, left her for dead, then fled from the cops. He was a “continued danger” and an ankle monitor wouldn’t prevent him from committing another crime, she argued.

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Bokota said if he didn’t have a criminal history, it would be different. She denied bond, saying he was a “danger” and a “flight risk.”

The woman was in her black Nissan Sentra on June 30 at Circle Park Mobile Homes, 2955 DeKalb St., in unincorporated Lake Station when he approached her at gunpoint wearing a black hoodie, mask and jeans, according to a criminal affidavit.

He demanded the keys, or he would shoot her. When the woman tried to pull away, he opened fire shooting her in the right chest.

He then “snatched” her from the car and kicked her, before taking off. The woman lost a lot of blood and was airlifted to a Chicago hospital.

The teen later crashed the car at U.S. 20 and the LaPorte County Line Road. He was “partially” ejected.


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