Three men from Indiana have been arrested for the rape and murder of a local pastor’s pregnant wife. The incident occurred during a home invasion on November 10, 2015. The victim was thirteen weeks pregnant when she was attacked and she died the next day. She was also the mother of a fifteen-month-old baby. Her husband was “baffled” by the attack and said he was relieved to hear that the three suspects were arrested.
“Though everything inside of me wants to hate, be angry, and slip into despair I choose the route of forgiveness, grace and hope,” the pastor and husband of the victim told the Daily News. “If there is one thing I’ve learned from Amanda in the 10 years we were together, it’s this: Choosing to let my emotions drive my decisions is recipe for a hopeless and fruitless life. Today I am deciding to love, not hate.”
The three suspects, Larry Taylor, Jalen Watson, and Diano Gordon, entered the home to find their victim Amanda Blackburn waiting for her husband to return home. Watson and Gordon left quickly with her credit cards while Taylor raped her and shot her in the head.
The suspects had previously been charged with murder as well as violation of their parols. They are also suspected of committing another rape and robbery.
“All victims of criminal homicides deserve closure, and as a community we must send a collective message that violence is not an option,” Indianapolis Police Chief Rick Hite told the Daily News. “Our detectives have worked tirelessly going days without sleep to solve murders in our city.”