Questions remain in Butler shooting

INDIANAPOLIS -- There are unanswered questions at Butler University after two people, including a police officer, were fatally shot Friday in Indianapolis.\nPolice say Officer James Davis responded to a call of a suspicious person inside the Hinkle Fieldhouse, where Khadir Al-Khattab, 26, had been watching the women's basketball team practice. \nIndianapolis police Sgt. Steve Staletovich said Al-Khattab was already outside when Davis arrived. Witnesses say they heard a single gunshot, saw the suspect pick up a gun -- later identified as Davis'gun -- and run away.\nThe search for Al-Khattab continued for three hours in Indianapolis. Meanwhile, all surrounding schools, including Butler, were placed on lockdown.\nA man who matched Al-Khattab's description was later identified on the 4400 block of N. Illinois St. When Indianapolis police responded to the scene, Al-Khattab instigated an exchange of gunfire that left him fatally wounded, said Capt. Phil Burton, spokesman for the Marion County Sheriff's Department. He was pronounced dead later that evening at Wishard Memorial Hospital in Indianapolis.\nStudents continued to visit the site all day Friday. A ring of candles marked the spot where Davis was fatally shot outside Hinkle. Davis' BUPD squad car was moved to the entrance of Butler along 46th Street. The car became barely visible, as passerbys adorned it with dozens of flowers and balloons. Even during the late hours, students were seen quietly remembering one of their own, paying tribute past midnight Friday.\nQuestions are still being asked as to what prompted Al-Khattab to fire at Davis in the first place. An autopsy later this week will reveal whether Davis was shot with his own gun.\nMeanwhile, Butler students remained on lockdown and were not allowed to go on campus until it was deemed safe.\nJordan Hall, one of the main buildings on Butler's campus, is where a majority of students were attending Friday morning classes.\nFreshman Matt Mishler was leaving Jordan Hall to go back to his dorm, Ross Hall, when an administrator would not let him leave.\n"She told me we had to stay there until further notice," Mishler said. "And we just sat in the halls for three hours."\nMishler said no one knew the reason for the lockdown until Butler President Bobby Fong came to Jordan to explain the situation to students.\n"About a half-hour into the lockdown, Fong came out and said there had been an officer shot, and we were on lockdown until it was known that it was safe to be on campus," he said.\nMishler also said the campus had been very quiet this past weekend, with most of the student body going home.\n"Even this weekend, I've heard half the campus went home and parties were cancelled, so it was really quiet," Mishler said.\nSenior Jared King, who was also in Jordan Hall during the lockdown, said he went to the computer lab to find out what had happened.\n"I had just finished class, and they wouldn't let us out," King said. "I had heard something before class, and in the middle of class, the director of student services was making announcements in the hallways."\nKing said the students were on lockdown in Jordan until 1:30 p.m. He also said that students around him were complaining about the lack of information being provided.\n"There were people in the computer lab that were complaining about the news coverage," King said. "They were mad that they didn't know what was going on."\nKing also speculated changes will be made on campus in light of Friday's events.\n"My friends and I have been talking and expect that security will be increased," he said. "Now, we'll probably have to show student IDs at events and to get into certain places."\nBUPD Sergeant Shawn Barks said the investigation of Officer Davis's death will be under the direction of the Indianapolis Police Department. Barks spoke of Officer Davis, who had only been with Butler since January 2003, as an exceptional officer. \n"He was an outstanding officer," Barks said. "I am in charge of scheduling, and he was always first to volunteer. He was an outstanding person and a pleasure to work with."\nFuneral services for Davis will be held at 10 a.m., Thursday. Fong has canceled Thursday classes. He is urging students, faculty, staff and community members to line the street from 46th Street and Sunset Avenue to Crown Hill Cemetery, where Officer Davis will be buried, in tribute to the fallen BUPD officer. The funeral procession will pass through the Butler campus on the way to the cemetery, according to Butler's Web site.\nThe Associated Press contributed to this story. \n-- Contact senior writer Lindsay Jancek at lmjancek@indiana.edu.