Hoosiers Now

Former Indiana Football Player Chris Beaty Killed in Downtown Indianapolis Violence

Chris Beaty played football at Indiana from 2000 to 2003 and has been a beloved member of the Indianapolis community for years. He died of multiple gunshot wounds this weekend in downtown Indy.

Tom Brew

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Chris Beaty was a Hoosier through and through. He grew up in Indianapolis, went to Cathedral High School, played college football at Indiana from 2000 to 2003 and has been a vibrant part of the Indianapolis community ever since.

But over the weekend he was killed during the violence in downtown Indianapolis that started as a protest over the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer in Minneapolis. The news of Beaty's death has shattered many people in and around the state.

He was loved that way.

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  • FUNERAL DATES SET: The memorial service and funeral dates for Chris Beaty have been set. CLICK HERE

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According to police reports, Beaty, 38, suffered multiple gunshot wounds in a shooting reported shortly before midnight on Satuday at Talbot and Vermont streets. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Beaty was one of two people killed that night in downtown Indianapolis in separate incidents.

Indianapolis police confirmed Sunday to the Indianapolis Star that one arrest has been made in connection to the fatal shootings, but officials did not say which shooting the suspect was involved in.

Indiana football coach Tom Allen released on statement on Beaty late Monday morning. It read:

"I am at a loss for words. The news of the passing of Chris Beaty is just devastating. Since I returned home to coach at Indiana, Chris embraced me, encouraged me, and supported me! His passion for life and Indiana football energized me every time we were together.

"He was one of our first alumni that displayed his unwavering support for what we are building here at Indiana and how we are building it. I am so heartbroken for his family and he will be deeply missed by all those that were blessed to call him a friend. #LEO

Beaty's head coach during his first two years at Indiana, Cam Cameron, also sent out a message on how much he cared for his defensive lineman.

"... I think I can speak for everyone in our locker room as well as Indiana University that we all loved Chris. Chris was a great person and teammate, a leader, someone who always put others, black or white, before himself.

"Unfortunately, from what I've been told, it cost him his life as he was returning home from helping someone else get home safely during the riots before he was shot. He was everything we as Hoosiers hope to inspire in others.

"As a Hoosier myself, it saddens me to know we have lost one of the great young men from our own state, someone who stood for everything we as Hoosiers believe is right. ... Chris, we love you and will miss you. God's blessings.'' 

Beaty was a popular promoter who always had things going on in and around town during the city's biggest events every year. He was just on television two weeks ago, being interviewed for a story on fashionable masks that one of his companies was involved in producing.

Beaty loved being in and around the Indiana football program, too. Many of his recent tweets were about IU football. He was a defensive lineman for Indiana during his four-year career with the Hoosiers.

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Beaty also had a big heart, and recently reached out to television personality Lindy Thackston, who's battling cancer right now.

 

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Beaty founded events promotion company Fresh Marketing in 2011. He was the past operating partner of Revel nightclub, general manager of Dunaway’s Palazzo Ossigeno and assistant general manager of 6 Lounge, according to reports. He also co-hosted online talk show “Digital Universe” with DJ GNO and Freddie Long.

He graduated from Cathedral High School in 2000. Beaty played on the school’s football team, which won 4A state championships in 1996, 1998 and 1999.

Former IU basketball standout Eric Gordon tweeted about Beaty overnight: “R.I.P. Chris Beaty. Was a great guy, we had some good times at IU. You will be truly missed bro.”

With fellow entrepreneur Joe Babish, Beaty recently launched Worldwide Masks — a company that sells one-piece face coverings to prevent the spread of germs.

The Indiana football program tweeted out a note of condolence on Monday morning as well.

Previous Chris Beaty stories

  • BEATY KILLED OUTSIDE APARTMENT (June 1): After violence broke out in downtown Indianapolis after a night of protesting, former Indiana football player Chris Beaty was killed outside his apartment trying to stop a robbery. CLICK HERE
  • BEATY'S FINAL MOMENTS (June 2): Chris Beaty died "trying to help others'' as friends describe his final hours that ended with his murder outside his downtown Indianapolis apartment. CLICK HERE
  • ARTISTS COMMEMORATE BEATY (June 4): The story behind the artists' mural of Chris Beaty in downtown Indianapolis, and the scholarship fund set up in his honor to help students at Cathedral High School and Indiana University. CLICK HERE
  • FUNERAL DATES SET (June 6): The memorial service and funeral dates for Chris Beaty have been set. CLICK HERE
  • HELPING OTHERS SUCCEED (June 10): Chris Beaty was a successful businessman, but what matters to him even more was helping his friends succeed with their businesses, too. CLICK HERE
  • TEARS FLOW AT BEATY MEMORIAL (June 12): Thousands of people came to say goodbye to Chris Beaty during his memorial service on Friday. CLICK HERE
Published
Tom Brew
TOM BREW

Tom Brew is an award-winning journalist who has worked at some of America's finest newspapers as a reporter and editor, including the Tampa Bay (Fla.) Times, the Indianapolis Star and the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. He has covered college sports in the digital platform for the past six years, including the last five years as publisher of HoosiersNow on the FanNation/Sports Illustrated network.

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