INDIANAPOLIS — Nearly four years after Metropolitan Police Officer Breann Leath was shot to death while responding to a domestic incident, a judge sentenced the man who killed her to more than 30 years in prison on Thursday.
Marion Superior Court Judge Mark Stoner also sentenced Elliahs Dorsey to 15 years of mental health probation that will begin after he serves his time in prison.
The judge sentenced Dorsey to time served for the death of Officer Leath, which comes to a little more than five years. The maximum sentence would have been six years.
"You know now that you… have a significant mental illness and if you don’t take care of it you are capable of extremely violent acts," Stoner told Dorsey. "You have taken one of our best and brightest off our streets."
Rick Snyder, president of the Indianapolis chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police, called Stoner's sentence a "disgrace."
"The decision made by this judge today was to sentence this violent offender to time served for the death of a police officer," Snyder said to media cameras gathered outside of court. "This is a disgrace. It’s a miscarriage of justice. The judge, quite frankly, should be ashamed of himself."
Dorsey has been incarcerated for since his arrest shortly after he shot Leath and another woman four years ago. With credit for good behavior, Dorsey has served nearly the maximum six years he could have received after his jury rejected murder and found him guilty of reckless homicide in Leath's death.
Stoner also sentenced Dorsey to 25 years in prison and 15 years of probation for the attempted murder of Aisha Brown. This charge carried the longest possible sentence Dorsey faced: a maximum of 40 years in prison.
The judge also sentenced Dorsey to two-and-a-half years in prison for charges of criminal recklessness against each of the three officers standing near Leath when he shot her. he ordered those sentences to be served concurrently and merge in with the sentence in Leath's death, which means Dorsey faces no additional prison time.
A jury on Feb. 23 decided that Dorsey fired a hail of gunshots blindly through a closed door when he killed Leath on April 9, 2020.
WATCH | Judge finds Elliahs Dorsey guilty but mentally ill on all 6 counts in killing of IMPD Officer Breann Leath
Leath and three other officers were responding to a domestic disturbance call at an apartment complex near 21st street and Shadeland Avenue.
According to evidence and testimony during the trial, Dorsey was inside that apartment and armed with a Kel-Tec PLR-16, a handgun that fires the same bullets as an AR-15 rifle.
Dorsey fired eight shots through the closed door. Two rounds struck Leath in the head. He also shot and wounded Aisha Brown as she ran from the apartment.
During Thursday's hearing, Dorsey spoke from the witness stand and apologized to Leaht's family, Brown and her family and his own family.
"I was not in my right mind that day, judge," Dorsey said. "I think you know that. I think this whole court knows that."
During the trial, mental health experts testified they believed Dorsey was having a brief psychosis.
In an 911 call prior to the shooting, Dorsey told dispatch: "I feel like someone been tryna kill me all day. I’m not paranoid about this."
Moments later, he asked: "Officer, you ever had the feeling you think someone is trying to kill you all day?"
Leath's loved ones were not swayed by Dorsey's mental illness claims.
“Your honor, there are millions of people in this country that suffer from various stages of mental illness that does not give someone the right to take a life," testified Officer Desiree Biggers, Leath's best friend on IMPD's East District.
Prosecutors had been seeking the death penalty, but they dismissed it citing evidence showing Dorsey was deemed mentally ill and ineligible for the death penalty.
Prosecutors argued that Dorsey should be found guilty of Leath's murder, Brown's attempted murder and other crimes. Defense attorneys asked the jury to find Dorsey not guilty by reason of insanity.
Dorsey was charged with murder, four counts of attempted murder, criminal confinement and battery.
After deliberating for about 14 hours over two days, jurors reached a compromise on the most serious charges, finding Dorsey guilty but mentally ill of reckless homicide instead of murder in Leath's death, and of criminal recklessness instead of attempted murder for the shots he fired at the three other officers who were alongside Leath.
The jury also found him guilty but mentally ill of the attempted murder and criminal confinement of Aisha Brown, the woman he held captive and wounded that day.
Under Indiana law, defendants found guilty but mentally ill must be evaluated and treated for mental illness by the Department of Correction while they serve whatever prison sentence a judge orders.
More: Here's what guilty but mentally ill means in Indiana court
Leath, 24, had been an IMPD officer for about two-and-a-half years. Before that, Leath worked the Indiana Department of Correction in the nursery at the Indiana Women's Prison. The DOC has since named the unit in Leath's honor.
Leath was also a young single, mom who left behind a young son. She loved sunflowers, loved to laugh and joke with friends and family.
And she deeply loved her son Zane, who will soon turn eight.
"Breann was such a kind person that she would have called Mr. Dorsey's familoy to let them know he was going to the hospital because he was paranoid," Biggers testified. "And if he was hungry, she wouldd have bought him food as well."
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett said the following:
As a former federal prosecutor and as an officer of the court, I acknowledge and respect our system of justice and the decisions that are made by our judicial officials. However, as the Mayor of the City of Indianapolis, as the chief elected official to whom IMPD directly reports, as a father, and as a member of this community, I am shocked and terribly disappointed in the decision of the court today.
In this moment, Indianapolis once again mourns the loss of a model police officer and young mom taken cruelly from the city that she loved so much she sought to protect it. As a community, let us take this moment to reaffirm our commitment to uplifting Officer Breann Leath’s young son, her family, and the men and women who served alongside her at IMPD, and to holding accountable anyone who threatens our city’s peace.
IMPD Police Chief Chris Bailey issued the following statement after the sentencing:
As the Police Chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, I respect the judicial process however, this sentencing decision fails to deliver the justice that Officer Leath, her son, and her family deserve.
On a personal level, as a father, and a career police officer, I am deeply disappointed in the sentence handed down by the judge this afternoon. This man killed a young mother and police officer, robbing Officer Leath of her life and all the potential she had. He also attempted to kill other officers and Ms. Brown. Nothing less than the full sentence under the law for his violent and senseless actions is acceptable.
Today’s sentence only makes the grief felt by Officer Leath's family, friends, colleagues, and the entire Indianapolis community much worse.
To Tom and Jennifer, your enduring strength and resilience in the face of such profound loss continue to inspire us all. Our support for you and Zayn does not end here. In fact, it grows stronger with each passing day. We and our community will continue to wrap our arms around you, while never forgetting Bre’s courage, compassion, and sacrifice.
As we reflect on Officer Leath's legacy of service, let us all honor her memory by upholding the values she lived by - integrity, bravery, compassion, and courage.
We would like to thank the community, the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office, the detectives assigned to investigate this case, our public safety partners, and all the officers who endured the pain and trauma of the trial and sentencing hearing.
Officer Leath will always be in our minds and our hearts. She is the epitome of a true hero, and I challenge you to “Be like Bre,” every day.
Contact WRTV reporter Vic Ryckaert at victor.ryckaert@wrtv.com or on X/Twitter: @vicryc.
More | Jury weighs fate of man accused of killing IMPD officer Breann Leath | Jury finds Elliahs Dorsey guilty but mentally ill on all 6 counts in killing of IMPD Officer Breann Leath | 911 call played in court as trial continues in case of fallen officer Breann Leath | Honoring the life of IMPD Officer Breann Leath one year after line-of-duty death
