Shot fired at Beech Grove Walmart marks store's second shooting in less than a year

BEECH GROVE — Members of the community are concerned for their safety after a gun was fired inside the Beech Grove Walmart Wednesday.

This is the second time in less than a year this has happened at the store, located at 4650 S. Emerson Ave.

In April 2021, an armed shopper fired shots to deter a suspected shoplifter who pulled a gun on an off-duty store security guard and park ranger.

In both that instance and Wednesday's, no one was hit by gunfire.

"It's well-documented that our Walmart has been a problem spot,” said Beech Grove Deputy Police Chief Robert Mercuri.

Mercuri told WRTV a single shot was fired during an altercation between two people. A third person who tried to intervene was injured in a physical struggle.

“The onus of this are the people that were there that night that were disputing with Walmart employees. They weren’t fighting over merchandise there. They had a feud that bled over into our Walmart that night,” Mercuri said.

Beech Grove Mayor Dennis Buckley said the city's Walmart is one of the few that pays to have police officers who provide protection outside the store.

“Walmart has done quite a bit to improve their image, especially at that store,” Beech Grove Mayor Dennis Buckley said. 

That's not enough to convince Maureen Hoar.

“I won't shop here unless there is nowhere else to, or there is nowhere else that's open. I don’t find Walmart to be very safe, especially this one,” said Hoar.

Hoar said her husband worked at that same Walmart for three years. She has seen firsthand the troubles that plagued the store and said something needs to be done to make sure that people can shop there safely.

In the meantime, Buckley has called on the public to stop the violence.

“I think we are our own worst enemy. The general public ... people have no compassion for each other anymore. That's a far cry from what it was 10 to 15 years ago,” Buckley said.