Police officials in Lafayette, Indiana, said they had arrested five people in connection with the nonfatal shootings five days ago of a prominent local judge and his wife, a case that raised alarms about attacks on the judiciary.

Police did not specify a motive in the case, but one of those charged with attempted murder in the shooting already faces felony charges in another case that was set to be tried before the judge in late January.

The arrests followed an attack Sunday in which a man, who lured his victims to the front door of their home claiming to have found a dog, shot through the door, injuring Judge Steven P. Meyer of Tippecanoe County Superior Court and his wife in Lafayette, the police said.

Meyer, 66, who was shot in the arm, is recovering but remains hospitalized. His wife, Kimberly Meyer, was treated for an injury to her leg and has been released from the hospital.

Police Announce Arrest of 5

The Lafayette police issued a news release late Thursday announcing the arrests of five people in connection with the case, including three residents of Lafayette and two residents of Lexington, Kentucky.

Thomas Moss, 43, and Blake Smith, 32, of Lafayette; along with Raylen Ferguson, 38, of Lexington, were charged with attempted murder as well as other alleged crimes, the release said.

Moss was a defendant in a long-running case in Meyer’s court following 2024 charges of shooting into a building, domestic battery and unlawful possession of a firearm. A trial in the case had been postponed several times but had recently been rescheduled for late January, according to court records.

An attorney for Moss, Benjamin Jaffe of Indianapolis, could not be reached for comment.

Amanda Milsap, 45, of Lafayette, and Zenada Greer, 61, of Lexington, were charged with less serious counts, including obstruction of justice.

The shootings prompted Loretta Rush, the chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court, to warn judges to remain vigilant.

“I worry about the safety of all our judges,” Rush wrote in a public statement. “As you work to peacefully resolve more than one million cases a year, you must not only feel safe, you must also be safe.”

The warning followed an increasing number of physical attacks and threats on public officials, including at the local level, over the past several years.

Meyer, who had recently announced plans to retire at the end of the year, had served on the bench for 12 years, presiding over a number of high-profile cases in the area. Before that, he had been a member of the Lafayette City Council.

In a statement Wednesday, Meyer expressed strong faith in the judicial system.

“This horrific violence will not shake my belief in the importance of peacefully resolving disputes,” he wrote. “I remain confident we have the best judicial system in the world and I am proud to be part of it.”

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Stephanie Saul
c. 2026 The New York Times Company