Austin Ousley to stand trial Monday for 2023 double shooting
EVANSVILLE ― The teenager accused of shooting two brothers, one of them fatally, last year before attempting to take his own life is scheduled to stand before a jury for the first time Monday.
Austin D. Ousley, who was 18 years old at the time he allegedly shot brothers Chad and Shawn Wildt, faces a bevy of felony charges, including murder and attempted murder.
The Vanderburgh County Prosecutor's Office will try Ousley on behalf of the state. According to court records, Ousley is represented by attorneys Christian Michael Lenn and Dawnya Taylor.
Ousley's attorneys are tasked with defending a client who reportedly admitted to having shot the two brothers at a rural farmhouse in the county's river bottoms on Feb. 27, 2023.
That quiet February afternoon turned deadly when Chad, 42, and Shawn Wildt, 36, confronted Ousley, who was armed with a handgun, and Ousley’s 17-year-old friend, who entered the family's farmhouse alongside Ousley, according to police records.
Chad and Shawn Wildt knew the teenagers had entered the home because they installed remote cameras at the property after suspecting a spate of break-ins, the Wildt family later said.
The confrontation left Shawn Wildt dead and Chad Wildt gravely wounded after Ousley allegedly opened fire. According to the Vanderburgh County Sheriff's Office, Ousley fled the scene of the crime and allegedly sent messages via social media admitting he had shot two men "while trespassing."
But little is publicly known about what exactly preceded the confrontation and shooting.
Ousley ultimately drove to a Rural King store in Evansville and attempted to take his own life in the parking lot, according to Sherriff Noah Robinson.
Paramedics transported Ousley to an Indianapolis hospital for treatment, and he was arraigned from his hospital bed there in March 2023.
Ousley was discharged April 4, 2023, and booked into the Vanderburgh County jail. He reportedly suffered permanent brain damage from a self-inflicted gunshot wound, but a judge found him competent to stand trial.
Ousley had previously been scheduled to go before jurors in January, but his defense team filed a successful motion to delay the trial until March 11, court records show.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Austin Ousley to stand trial Monday for 2023 double shooting
