New Albany teen accepts plea deal in murder case

Sep. 26—NEW ALBANY — A teenager has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for a fatal shooting on Cherry Street in New Albany in March 2021.

Vance L. Martin, who was 17 at the time of the shooting, accepted a plea deal and was sentenced on Monday in Floyd Superior Court No. 3.

He pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the death of 38-year-old Joshua Gonzales, which dropped the count of murder he had been charged with originally. Martin was charged as an adult in the case.

The plea deal also resulted in the dismissal of possession of methamphetamine and firearms charges.

Floyd County Prosecutor Chris Lane said Martin has been sentenced to serve 16 of the 17 years with the Indiana Department of Correction.

“What is a troubling trend in all of this is the age of the perpetrators. We are seeing younger and younger, especially males in our community, committing these acts,” Lane said. “As prosecutor what I can do is hold them accountable on a back end and unfortunately they’ll be in jail for many, many years.”

According to court documents Martin called 911 after the shooting. He told emergency dispatchers that Gonzales had entered his home and tried to rob him.

Martin and a family member told police that the defendant had been outside his home with a friend when Gonzales approached and asked if he had methamphetamine. He told Gonzales he did and the group walked inside to get the drugs.

Court records said an argument ensued after Gonzales grabbed the drugs, pulled out a gun and pointed it at Martin. Martin responded by pulling out his own gun and pointing it at Gonzales. Gonzales allegedly fired the first shot, then Martin fired toward the victim “several times,” including shooting at his head.

A witness also said Gonzales became angry after Martin handed him a bag of methamphetamine and pointed his gun at Martin, demanding Martin give him a gun, money and any other drugs.

Authorities found a baggie in the victim’s hand that was later determined to contain the drug, according to court records. An autopsy showed Gonzales had been shot three times in the head, twice at close range.

“My call to the community is to get involved with organizations, their local church, the school system, (organizations like) Big Brothers Big Sisters and invest in these kids,” Lane said. “So they see there’s another path than the life of violence and drugs.”