Her voice heavy and her face etched with pain, the sister of a woman killed in a weekend shooting asked for prayers for the 15-year-old suspect in the case.
Faith Williams was killed and another relative injured in a shooting on Friday, Aug. 21, at a business on the city’s east side, Detroit police confirmed. Her death was one part of a spate of violence over the weekend that Detroit city officials addressed in a Monday, Aug. 24, news conference at which Williams’ sister spoke.
Williams died from a gunshot wound to the head, Lucinda Pearson said. Pearson’s niece remains in the hospital, too.
She needs prayers, as does the young man arrested in the death, the grieving loved one said.
If God can forgive, “who are we not to forgive him?” Pearson said.
Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said he couldn’t release too many details as of Monday and said that the motive may never be known for the shooting about 11:15 p.m. in the 15500 block of East Warren Avenue. However, Bettison responded to one question at the gathering, saying the teenage suspect wasn’t previously involved in the juvenile justice system.
“That’s what’s shocking − but someone knew,” he said.
Video circulating on social media appears to show a young man – the same young man shown in images released by police as they searched for the suspect – seemingly shooting at close range and at random as women entered a business he was leaving.
Bettison called on the public to check on their loved ones. In doing so, he also pointed to two other recent acts of violence.
One in particular: the discovery of two bodies on Thursday, Aug. 20, that led to the discovery of skeletal remains of a third person.
Officers conducted a well-being check that day in the 10500 block of Stoepel Street on the city's west side after a neighbor reported a foul odor, the chief said. A 14-year-old boy and his 50-year-old mother were found dead at the home, and police so far believe it may have been a murder-suicide.
Police then learned the woman’s husband had not been seen or heard from in years.
They subsequently found skeletal remains in the basement.
All three individuals are believed to have died from gunshot wounds.
Separately, police noted that four people, including a 10-year-old boy, were injured in a mass shooting on Friday on Haverhill Street in the city. Bettison referred to the incident as a drive-by shooting.
The 15-year-old arrested following Williams’ death has not yet been charged, but Bettison said he expects charges by the end of the week.
Pearson thanked the public for the love, support, thoughts and prayers that have surrounded her family since the shooting Friday; she also noted any donations to a GoFundMe to support the family would be appreciated.
In an email, Detroit police’s public information department stated it had Williams’ age as 65; a slew of online postings have stated she was 57 years old.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: ‘Someone knew,’ Detroit police chief says of teen shooting suspect
