Detroit Grandmother May Face Charges in Fatal Shooting of Boy, 13

DETROIT, MI — Charges may be filed against a grandmother in the fatal shooting of a 13-year-old after two boys found a loaded handgun on her nightstand, the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office said Tuesday.

The grandmother, whose name hasn’t been released, was taken into custody after the fatal shooting at 1:13 p.m. Monday in her home on the on the 4300 block of Tireman Street.

The fatal shooting occurred Monday when the woman’s 14- and 15-year-old grandsons were staying in her home while they had a day off from school due to the snowstorm. The boys were unsupervised while their grandmother went to work, according to media reports.

Police said the boys invited their friend, 13-year-old Emarje “EJ” Watkins, to the home to play some video games to and “possibly scare him with the gun,” WWJ/CBS Detroit reported.

“One of the boys — we’re not sure who — picked up the weapon and pointed it in the direction of the 13 year old,” Detroit Police Officer Nicole Kirkwood told The Detroit News.

Emergency personnel who responded to a 911 call attempted to revive the boy, but were unable to do so. He was pronounced dead at a local hospital.

The teens’ grandmother told police her bedroom door was locked and they had broken into the room, the Detroit Free Press reported.

Earlier this spring, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy filed charges against several adults after children found handguns and were injured or killed. They included

“Detroit and Wayne County have huge issues with children dying from firearm use,” Worthy said at the time. “And no matter how much we sugarcoat it or say it’s not so or try to cover it up with stats about crime going down, it still remains an issue that we have to address.”

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