James Lewis Johnson, 54, of Beech Grove, Indiana, died on June 8, 2015, after a police-action shooting on South 4th Avenue. Officers had been sent earlier that afternoon on a suicidal-person call. He refused commands to drop the weapon and moved toward officers; the situation tightened into seconds and, when he pointed the gun at officers, they fired and he was struck and later pronounced dead.

Neighbors and records linked the episode to Johnson’s history of mental illness. No outside suspects were arrested because responding officers fired the fatal shots; the incident was handled as an officer-involved shooting. Available documentation notes body-worn camera footage was not part of the evidence. Johnson’s obituary described him as a U.S. Air Force veteran, a disabled veteran, a construction worker who loved fishing and storytelling, and a man survived by daughters and extended family.

Did anyone in Beech Grove know James or have memories of him that could add context to that day?