INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana roads have become more deadly in recent years, a surge that coincides with fewer officers enforcing traffic laws in the state's largest city.
Deaths caused by crashes on Indiana roads jumped 18% from 2019 to 2022, according to a recent study by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit based in Washington, D.C.
Meanwhile, a shortage of officers and shifting priorities means IMPD no longer enforces traffic laws at the levels it did before the pandemic, Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Assistant Chief Chris Bailey said.
"Our traffic unit is isn't as robust as it once was," Bailey said. "We've become a major event city. And so our traffic unit spends a lot of time making sure pedestrians and cars are able to get to and from Lucas Oil and Gainbridge Fieldhouse and Victory Field and the Convention Center."
The TRIP study found traffic deaths increased in Indiana even though people drove less often in 2020 and 2021. In 2022, according to the study, vehicle miles traveled on Indiana roads rebounded to just slightly higher than the 2019 pre-pandemic level.
TRIP researchers said the increase in deaths appears to be related to risky driving behavior, including not wearing seat belts, driving under the influence and speeding.
"That's crazy though because it's sad that people can be driving that fast," said Nadine Bishop, whose son Andrew McClain was killed in a hit-and-run crash early Aug. 5.
McClain, 26, had worked his Friday night shift at Iozzo's Garden of Italy restaurant. His car wouldn't start that day but he made it to work anyway. He was riding home on a scooter about 2 a.m. when he was struck by a vehicle near West 33rd and North Illinois streets.
The driver fled, police said, leaving McClain to die on the road.
"What is the rush? You killing people for nothing," Bishop said.
McClain was hard worker who started out washing dishes two years ago and rose to helping prepare meals at the restaurant, Iozzo's owner Katie Harris said.
"We are praying for Drew and his family," Harris said.
Harris said McClain's friends and family experienced the dangerous driving first-hand when they held a prayer vigil on the street where he was struck.
"When we were on North Illinois Street, yeah, they were zooming by and paying no regard for actual people like standing in a parking lane," Harris said.
"My heart was kind of racing that night, just making sure everybody was safe because that's where the accident happened, so it could possibly, or evenly easily, happen again."
No one has been arrested in McClain's death, but an IMPD spokesman told WRTV detectives believe they have found the vehicle and may have found the driver. The case remains under investigation.
Bailey, the IMPD assistant chief, said drivers need to slow down and be more responsible.
"People are just in, you know, a damn hurry everywhere you go," Bailey said.
"It goes back to personal responsibility, too. We all have a responsibility to drive with due regard for our own selves and those around us and can't always put it on the government or the police to solve the problems."
McClain's coworkers at Iozzo's set up a Gofundme to raise money for his two sons.
MORE | Victim's family asking for answers after fatal hit-and-run
Contact WRTV reporter Vic Ryckaert at victor.ryckaert@wrtv.com or on Twitter: @vicryc.
