LOWELL â The family of a 42-year-old military veteran shot to death by a guest in his home Jan. 3 described him Wednesday as an amazing father and devoted husband, son, brother and friend.Â
Nicholas Lile, a Merrillville native, was a 22-year veteran, a U.S. Navy corpsman attached to a U.S. Marines battalion who served with pride and distinction on seven combat deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, his family said.
Lile was in his basement with his wife, her friend and the friend s recent boyfriend, off-duty U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs officer Timothy R. Thomas, when Thomas shot him to death about 12:15 a.m. Jan. 3, according to Lake County sheriff s police and court records.