Jury finds man not guilty of Gary junkyard murder

A Merrillville man was found not guilty of murder in a January shooting at a Gary junkyard.

The jury reached its verdict Friday after Michael Brown, 43, was on trial last week in Lake Superior Court.

Brown was charged in February with murder, along with his co-defendant, Hillard Hathaway, 47, in the death of Danny Leake, 44, of Gary. Hathaway faces an additional count of attempted murder.

Leake died Jan. 25 after he was found shot in an empty lot near a junkyard in the 1400 block of East 19th Avenue, court records show.

Brown took the stand at his trial, his attorney, Scott King, said.

“I thought he was responsive to all the questions, whether it was me, or the prosecutor,” King said. “I just think he presented himself as he is, in my experience, a very truthful guy.”

King said his client’s testimony matched the evidence in the case.

“I was just gratified the jury, from outward appearances, seemed very atten- tive and engaged,” King said.

Police responded to a call of shots fired around 1:30 a.m. Jan. 25, according to a probable cause affidavit. A witness said he and Leake had spent the day together towing vehicles, court records state.

When the witness and Leake pulled up to “the yard” on 19th Avenue, they saw a burgundy Suburban with tinted windows and a black Mercury vehicle there, according to the affidavit.

Hathaway was “taking the batteries out of a semi truck,” so the witness confronted him, the affidavit states, and Hathaway claimed the truck belonged to him.

The witness relayed that the owner of the lot said Hathaway and Brown “weren’t supposed to be in the yard,” according to the affidavit.

Shots were fired, resulting in Leake being injured, court records show.

Hathaway’s criminal case remains ongoing. He is scheduled for a hearing Dec. 11, according to court records.