A 15-year-old boy is in custody following a deadly shooting outside a liquor store on Detroit’s east side that left a 57-year-old woman dead and another woman critically injured.
The shooting happened at approximately 11:15 p.m. on Friday, August 21, outside a business in the 15500 block of East Warren Avenue, near Chalmers Road in Detroit’s Morningside neighbourhood.
The woman killed has been identified as Faith Williams, 57. Her niece was also struck by gunfire and was hospitalized in critical condition.
Surveillance footage captured the shooting as the women approached the business. Authorities subsequently circulated images of the suspected gunman while seeking the public’s assistance in locating him.
Detroit Police later confirmed that a 15-year-old boy was taken into custody in connection with the shooting.
One of the most troubling aspects of the investigation is the apparent lack of a known connection between the teenager and the victims. Family accounts indicate the women had not spoken to the teenager before the gunfire erupted. Police, however, have not publicly established a motive.
Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said investigators may ultimately never know exactly why the shooting occurred.
Reports circulating after the shooting also claimed the teenager had recently lost his mother and appeared in footage carrying what may have been her obituary. That information has not been formally confirmed by Detroit Police and authorities have not established whether the reported death of his mother had any connection to the shooting.
Williams’ family has responded to the tragedy with an unusual message of compassion. Her sister publicly asked people to pray not only for Williams’ injured niece and grieving relatives, but also for the teenager accused in the killing.
The case remains under investigation as authorities work to determine what led to the deadly encounter and prosecutors consider charges against the teenage suspect.
