SCOTUS passes on Indiana case of man sentenced for involvement in deadly shooting of a 2 year old

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -- The U.S. Supreme Court has declined to hear the appeal of a man sentenced to 60 years in prison for his role in a shooting that killed a northern Indiana boy who was playing outside.

The high court announced Monday that it would not take up the case of Tyre Bradbury, who was 15 in April 2014 when 2-year-old John Swoveland Jr. was struck by a stray bullet and died.

Bradbury is serving a 60-year sentence on a murder conviction for allegedly providing the handgun another man used to fire a shot that killed Swoveland. The South Bend boy was playing outside blocks away from a gang fight when he was fatally shot.

The accused shooter, Robert Griffin, also was convicted of murder and received a 60-year sentence.

Last year, a divided Indiana Supreme Court upheld Bradbury’s conviction.

That decision came after the Indiana Court of Appeals ruled in December 2020 that Bradbury's murder conviction should be thrown out and that he should receive a new trial because his attorneys were ineffective.

Bradbury was originally sentenced to 90 years in prison because a criminal gang enhancement doubled his minimum 45-year sentence for murder.

However, the state Court of Appeals ruled in September 2017 that his original sentence was too severe. His current sentence includes 45 years for murder and 15 years for the gang enhancement.