A 35-year-old Indiana man, Orlando Mitchell, has been sentenced to 66 years in prison in connection with the 2022 death of his ex-girlfriend, 32-year-old Krystal Walton. Mitchell murdered Walton outside of a daycare in Indianapolis, shooting her multiple times while children watched, horrified.
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According to PEOPLE, the incident took place on September 16, 2022, at around 7:30 a.m. Mitchell hid while he waited for Walton outside the Charity Child Care in Indianapolis. As soon as Walton dropped off her son and returned to her vehicle, Mitchell ran up behind her and fatally shot her seven times. At the time, multiple people witnessed the murder, including children at the daycare.
A probable cause affidavit alleged at the time that police body camera footage showed Mitchell saying, "I shot that b---h!" and "I shot that b---h in the face!" while he was being arrested.
As per WRTV, prior to her death, Krystal Walton had a protective order against Orlando Mitchell. She also told police that she feared for her life. Moreover, a month after he murdered Walton, the affidavit alleged that Mitchell had threatened to kill both her and himself in a murder-suicide.
This allegation was raised by Mitchell's mother. She also claimed that Mitchell had become upset after Walton prevented him from seeing his son. "If he couldn't see his son, she wasn't gonna be in his life either," Mitchell's mother said.
After a standoff with police, Orlando Mitchell was arrested and charged with murder. As per WTHR, he had previous charges of breaking and entering, invasion of privacy, violating a no-contact order, and intimidation. Allegedly, one month before the murder, he broke into Walton's house to pick up his son after being told not to.
Sentenced
In February 2025, he was found guilty of murder after a jury deliberated for 90 minutes, as per CBS4. A month later, Mitchell was sentenced to 66 years in prison. Walton's family, back in February, said that Mitchell's conviction was like a "victory that's indescribable."
"We've been waiting a long time for this, so I'll call this justice for Krystal, phase one. We're very, very pleased with the outcome," Christopher Walton, Krystal's father, said. "She didn't stand a chance and this creepy predator violently and viciously attacked her. So we're jumping for joy on the inside, but we're trying to figure out why this due process hurts so bad."
On July 2023, while being transported to a medical appointment, Orlando Mitchell allegedly attacked Marion County Deputy John Durm. He allegedly choked him to death with his handcuffs while trying to escape from jail. He was also charged with murder, and as per PEOPLE, prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
