Police: Mom shot man who tried to rape her 12-year-old daughter at hotel

Police crime scene tape is pictured - File Image.

INDIANAPOLIS — A mother shot and critically injured a 39-year-old man attempting to molest her 12-year-old daughter last week at a hotel on the northwest side of Indianapolis, investigators say.

In Marion Superior Court 30, Bruce Lee Pierce faces three top-level felony charges: attempted rape, and two counts of attempt to commit child molesting. He also faces a mid-level felony charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violence felony, and a low-level felony charge of confinement of a person 13 or younger.

Pierce has been listed on the Marion County Sheriff’s Office’s sex offender registry since September 2019. He was convicted three times of child molesting in Hendricks and Morgan counties in 2016 and 2022, and was last released in August 2022, according to the registry and Indiana Department of Correction online records.

Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department confirmed Thursday that Pierce has not yet been jailed.

IMPD was called to a report of a shooting and an attempted rape about 7:45 a.m. May 24 at the Baymont Inn, 3850 Eagle View Drive. That’s northwest of the I-465 interchange for West 38th Street.

In court documents, investigators from IMPD say they learned the mother had left the hotel room to take items to a car, and, when she returned, she found Pierce trying to rape her 12-year-old daughter and shot him.

The girl was taken to Riley Hospital for Children due to the firearm being discharged by her ear. The girl said he’d only touched her stomach, chest and shoulder when ripping her clothes off.

Pierce was taken to Eskenazi Hospital in critical condition.

Investigators took a Glock 43 firearm covered with blood in a trash can in the hotel room.

Before Pierce was taken to the hospital, an IMPD officer took an empty holster from Pierce’s waistband.

Multiple shell casings and live rounds were found in the room as well.

A warrant was issued Wednesday for Pierce’s arrest. The Marion County sex offender registry had Pierce’s last address as 6231 W. Washington St. That’s the address of Regal 8 Inn located northwest of the I-465 interchange. A desk clerk told IMPD that Pierce was last seen on Tuesday morning at the motel.

Because of Pierce’s prior convictions for child molesting, Pierce, once arrested, will face a bond greater than the standard amount because he’s a risk to the community. Bond will be set once an initial hearing is held, online court records say.

Once jailed, Pierce will be held seven days without bond so prosecutors can initiate a bond revocation.

Prosecutors also say Pierce is on probation for driving while suspended.

In Boone County, Pierce has a pretrial conference scheduled for June 11 in Boone Circuit Court in Lebanon on charges of driving while suspended, operating a motor vehicle without financial responsibility, operating with expired plates, and operating a motor vehicle with a false plate that belong to another vehicle.

On the registry, Pierce is described as 6-feet-2 and 200 pounds with brown eyes and brown hair, although his photo of the registry shows he’s bald. The IMPD reports on the incident say Pierce weighs 175 pounds.

The registry says he has multiple tattoos: on the left leg, “VL,” skull, tribal; on right shin, “Kayden”; on upper back, cross; on chest, tribal, “Live & Let Live”; on right forearm, Chinese and Lexis; on left forearm, Chinese, fork “Bruce II”; on face, “Real Fame”; about left eye, “EMMA”; above right eye, teardrop; on neck, “FTW biohazard sign; on right hand across knuckles, “FAST”; and on left hand across knuckles, “LIFE.”

Gregg Montgomery, CNN