Gary man sentenced in 2019 Polk Street shooting

A Gary man received a split sentence Thursday after admitting he shot and wounded a man in a car, when a woman and her child were inside.

Cachun Combs Jr., 45, was sentenced to three years in prison with another two on probation. He will be credited about 16 months for time served.

He pleaded guilty Jan. 13 to battery resulting in serious bodily injury, a level 5 felony. Alleging the victim shot first, Comb’s plea deal was the “wisest resolution,” his lawyer, Susan Severtson, said in court.

Combs was shot in the leg on Feb. 25, which they believed was in retaliation for the earlier shooting, the lawyer said.

Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Arturo Balcazar asked for a maximum six-year sentence, while Severtson asked for time served.

According to a probable cause affidavit, a witness said at around 7:18 p.m. June 27, 2019, a tan Buick and black Cadillac were heading eastbound side by side along Polk Street in Gary when they heard four gunshots.

Immediately afterward, a man leaned out of the Cadillac’s rear seat window and fired off 15 more shots toward the Buick before it fled down Fillmore Street and the Buick down Harrison Street, the affidavit said.

After the shooting, the victim said he’d been hit, and the passenger took over driving and got him to Methodist Hospital’s Northlake Campus for treatment, court records said. The victim, according to court records, was shot four times in the left thigh, once in his left hand and once in his right calf.

The victim, who identified Combs as someone he’s known since childhood, said Combs was angry at him for previously stopping a fight between Combs and another person, the affidavit said. Police also noted the Cadillac had been struck by bullets eight or nine times on the driver’s side, records said.

He was originally charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery, battery by means of a deadly weapon and battery resulting in serious bodily injury.

Combs was charged with attempted murder in 2007, but 2009 plea agreement in that case had him plead guilty to attempted battery and carrying a handgun without a license, according to court records.