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A 25-year-old woman in Indiana will spend several decades behind bars for killing a woman, gunning her down outside of a nightclub because the shooter’s sister was jealous over how much attention the victim was getting from the ex-boyfriend of the shooter’s sister. Marion County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey L. Marchal ordered Arieal Smith to serve a sentence of 48 years in a state correctional facility for the 2022 slaying of Secoya Williams, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
In addition to murder, a jury in Indianapolis also found her guilty on charges of felony pointing a firearm at another person and carrying a handgun without a license, though the latter charge was later vacated by the court. Marchal specifically sentenced Smith to 47 years on the murder charge and one year on the pointing a firearm charge, with the sentences to run consecutively, meaning one after the other.
The shooter’s sister, 29-year-old Ebonie Parks, was also arrested in connection with Williams’ murder as she drove the vehicle used to flee the scene of the shooting. She was found guilty on one count of assisting a criminal in the commission of a murder and subsequently ordered to remain in home detention for two years.
Arieal Smith and Ebonie Parks (Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Dept.)
According to a news release from the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, officers with the department’s Northwest District at about 1:30 a.m. on Feb. 25, 2022, responded to an emergency call about a person being shot outside of Club Kalakutah, a nightclub located in the 4700 block of Century Plaza Road. Upon arriving at the scene, first responders located a 25-year-old female in the club parking lot — later identified as Williams — who was suffering from injuries that appeared to be consistent with a gunshot wound to the torso.
Emergency Medical Services rushed Williams to a local hospital for treatment. Unfortunately, she succumbed to her wounds shortly after arriving at the facility and was pronounced dead.
Court documents obtained by Indianapolis Fox affiliate WXIN provided additional details about the incident.
The station reported that interviews with multiple witnesses at the scene revealed that Smith and Williams had gotten into an altercation inside of the club.
Smith was seen throwing a drink in the face of Williams, who was there to see a male friend perform, Indianapolis NBC affiliate WTHR reported. The friend who was performing had previously dated Parks, the report states.
The dispute reportedly ended when a security guard escorted Smith out of the club and back out onto the street.
Later in the evening, Williams reportedly left the establishment, walked up to the vehicle Smith was in, and started knocking on the window. That is when police say Smith opened the car door and fired a single shot that struck Williams in the stomach. Parks then drove the vehicle from the scene.
The sisters were arrested less than a week later and claimed to have shot Williams by accident when trying to fire a warning shot, WTHR reported.
“A person’s life was cut short and innocent bystanders were put in danger due to the actions of the defendant, and now, two families have suffered the consequences,” Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears said in a statement following the sentencing hearings, WXIN reported. “We hope that today’s resolution bring solace to Ms. Williams’ family as they continue to move forward from this tragedy and honor her memory.”
