A possible motive behind the deadly shooting, witnesses reportedly told them that Sullivan was walking alongside two females on Howe Street

Publushed by RawNews1st

On September 26, 2025 around 9:40 p.m, police say officers were called to the intersection of W. Howe Street and S. Morton Street in Bloomington, Indiana to investigate reports that a shooting had occurred. BPD said officers encountered a man lying on the ground shortly after arriving on the scene. The victim had suffered a gunshot wound to the left side of his upper torso. Officers immediately provided treatment until the IU Health Ambulance Service and Bloomington Fire Department could assist. Sullivan later died at IU Health Bloomington Hospital that evening.

The victim was identified as 29-year-old Shawn Sullivan.

As officers began to investigate a possible motive behind the deadly shooting, witnesses reportedly told them that Sullivan was walking alongside two females on Howe Street. At some point, these witnesses spotted a dark-colored Volkswagen Passat speeding up directly behind the group. In response, the witnesses said Sullivan reportedly threw a bicycle at the vehicle.

The Bloomington Police Department (BPD) said a man, who they later identified as 26-year-old Stephen Dixon II, then exited the vehicle and allegedly fired one shot at Sullivan. The suspect then re-entered the vehicle and continued driving northbound on Madison Street.

Investigators then sifted through video footage that several businesses in the area had collected to gather evidence. BPD said a gas station located near Kirkwood Avenue and Rogers Street showed a vehicle that appeared to match the given description pulling into the parking lot on the same night of the shooting.

Dixon and a woman identified as 30-year-old Kaila Simms then entered the gas station around 9:24 p.m.. They left several minutes later and continued driving southbound on Rogers Street.

BPD said the man who appeared in the footage matched the description of the suspected shooter that witnesses supplied to police, and the shooting took place minutes after the vehicle left the gas station’s parking lot.

As the investigation developed, BPD continued to receive more tips claiming that Dixon was the alleged shooter. One tip claimed he was also involved in a separate shooting that occurred on Sept. 22 in the 1600 block of N. Willis Drive. Detectives managed to obtain the license plate number of the vehicle allegedly involved, which they determined was registered to Simms.

On October 6, police then began to surveil Dixon and Simms. They reportedly followed as they dropped two children off at an elementary school before parking in a nearby alleyway. Dixon and Simms then traveled south toward Lawrence County, where they stopped at a gas station in Bedford.

It was there that Dixon and Simms were taken into custody without further incident. Police said Dixon was armed with a loaded 9mm Hi-Point handgun.

Allegedly, Dixon admitted during a police interview that he did shoot Sullivan after the victim threw a bike at his vehicle. Dixon said he got out of his car to confront the victim. At this point, he claimed Sullivan began digging into a bag he had with him.

Dixon said he opened fire in response, stating that he attempted to shoot Sullivan in the legs before later finding out he had actually shot him in the chest, court documents said. He also admitted that the firearm authorities confiscated at the time of his arrest was the weapon he used.

Dixon was transported to the Monroe County Jail, where he faces the following preliminary charges:

• Murder
• Two counts of Unlawful Carrying of a Handgun (Level 5 Felony)
• Criminal Recklessness (Level 5 Felony)

Meanwhile, Simms was preliminarily charged with neglect of a dependent, which is a level 6 felony. This charge was filed by police after they learned that she continued to have her children around Dixon despite knowing he was allegedly involved in two separate shootings.