Man gets 6 years after Kokomo Beach shooting

Kim Dunlap, Kokomo Tribune, Ind.
·2 min read

Sep. 1—A Kokomo man who pleaded guilty last month for his role in a June 2021 shooting at Kokomo Beach Family Aquatic Center that left a 16-year-old critically injured was sentenced Thursday to six years in the Indiana Department of Correction.

All of those years will be executed in prison.

According to court records, the defendant, 18-year-old Tristyn Listenbee, pleaded guilty to a Level 5 felony count of dangerous possession of a firearm by a child with a previous conviction and a Level 6 felony count of criminal recklessness.

Two other charges — a Level 1 felony count of attempted murder and a Level 6 felony count of theft of a firearm — were dismissed prior to Thursday's sentencing hearing.

Both Listenbee and his attorney appeared via Zoom during Thursday's court proceedings, while several members of the victim's family sat in the back of the courtroom.

One of those family members was the victim's mother, Christy Merriweather, who also testified on behalf of her son.

Merriweather told the court that this past year has been "rough" on the family.

"With the grace of God, he's still here," Merriweather said. "As a mother, watching your son on a table, not knowing. ... I think he's (Listenbee) getting a slap on the wrist. ... Other people could have been hurt."

It was shortly after 5 p.m. on June 15, 2021, when authorities were dispatched to the area of the aquatic center and nearby Foster Park in reference to a juvenile who was shot and had to be transported to a local hospital before being airlifted to Indianapolis.

During the course of the investigation, police learned from witnesses at the scene that the shooting might have been the result of a fight that occurred earlier that afternoon inside Foster Park involving at least five juveniles.

Listenbee — who was 17 at the time the shooting occurred — was taken into custody a short time later at Foster Park.

Two other juveniles were also arrested for their alleged connections to the case.

Each was arrested on a felony charge of aiding, inducing or causing attempted murder, per initial police reports.

However, due to their ages, the records of those two juveniles are still sealed.

It's unclear at this time whether Listenbee plans to appeal his sentence, which is allowable under Indiana law.