BATON ROUGE - A man accused of killing another person who was asking for money in the parking lot of a bustling shopping center is now indicted in the killing.

District Attorney Hillar Moore confirmed that a grand jury formally charged Jayce Boyd on charges of second-degree murder and illegal use of a weapon Wednesday.  Boyd is accused of killing Danny Buckley in the parking lot of the shopping center along Perkins Road near the Acadian Thruway on Aug. 22.

The shooting caught national attention after police questioned Boyd at the scene of the killing and then allowed him to leave. He was arrested several days later amid a swell of controversy over BRPD's handling of the case.

Arrest records later revealed the shooting happened after Boyd shouted at Buckley because he was panhandling in the parking lot.

According to police, Boyd grabbed a gun from his vehicle and tried to shoot Buckley whenever the panhandler approached him. The gun misfired, however, and Boyd loaded another round into the chamber before killing Buckley. 

Arrest documents said Buckley was "unarmed and was out of arms reach" when he was shot and killed. 

Boyd was arrested and ultimately bonded out of jail in September 2020.