Chase Williams, the 12-year-old boy involved in the murder of Phillip Danner, has been released from juvenile detention.
Danner was murdered April 20 at 9219 E. Doswell Boulevard, Cromwell.
Williams did not take part in the actual shooting of Danner, but waited outside. He later met up with Colt Lundy, 15, and Paul Gingerich, 12, and left the area.
Williams was charged with assisting a criminal and was sentenced to six years in juvenile detention. He was the only one of the three who was not charged as an adult.
Lundy was sentenced to 25 years in prison, with five years of probation. Gingerich also received 30 years.
After sentencing, Williams was sent to Plainfield for evaluation and then sent to the South Bend Juvenile Correctional Facility in June.
According to Prosecuting Attorney Dan Hampton, once a youth is sentenced to a juvenile facility, he becomes a ward of the Department of Corrections. An assessment is done to determine what programs the youth will benefit from. Once those programs are complete, a risk assessment is done to determine if the youth can be paroled. Williams did complete the programs he was put in and was released in November.
Initial reports said Williams was released to his mother and stepfather. However, his mother, Tracie Williams, is in jail on methamphetamine charges from December, with her bond set at $1,000. The "stepfather", Williams' boyfriend, Jason Bell, is also still incarcerated, also on methamphetamine charges with a bond of $100,000. Bell also faces further charges of failing to stop after an accident.
Hampton did say that although Kosciusko County no longer has any official capacity in the Chase Williams case, under the compulsory school laws, Williams is in school and his whereabouts cannot be disclosed at this time. Where he is living and who he is living with also cannot be disclosed, according to Hampton.
