It was a busy Sunday for the Detroit Police Department after two children were victimized in separate shootings, one of which was fatal.
“That’s wild,” said Christopher Felder, who lives nearby. “That’s a whole bunch, all of this in one day.”
The first incident involved a 14-year-old girl who died during a shooting at Riverfront Towers in an apartment full of teenagers at 4:10 a.m. on Sunday.
“We had six males in a house, three females. There was some gun play, messing with a gun, and the gun goes off. The 14-year-old tragically lost her life,” said Assistant Police Chief Charles Fitzgerald.
According Fitzgerald, the boys inside took off after realizing what happened.
Fast forward to a few hours later to 2:20 p.m., a 12-year-old boy was shot by his 14-year-old brother only nine miles away. Apparently, the brothers were pushing a go kart when they claim to have spotted a wild dog. In response, the 14-year-old pulled out a firearm and accidentally shot his younger brother instead, officials said.
“Senseless,” Fitzgerald said. “Not sure why a 14 or a 12-year-old would have an Uzi style weapon in their possession for any reason.”
The 12-year-old was shot in the ankle and is now in stable condition. But, with so much violence going on in the city, and the entire country, this is just another example of how firearms continue to remain a serious issue.
In the second incident, the parents may potentially be facing charges for how the kids got their hands on the firearm in the first place.
“It’s just the fact that he had it,” Fitzgerald said. “He had that in his possession from someone. We know he didn’t go to the store and buy it. Somebody gave it to him.”
Police said they couldn’t find the dog that the boys supposedly spotted.
“The good question is where these teens are getting this weapons from and how they’re getting access to them,” a neighbor said. “Because it seems like the parents are never there to know what their children are doing and who they’re hanging around.”
See the full report in the video player above.