An 11-year-old boy has been charged with manslaughter in the death of a 3-year-old boy, identified as Elijah Walker, outside of Detroit.
The 11-year-old, who remains anonymous due to his age, was visiting his father in Detroit’s Eastwood neighborhood. He came upon a handgun from the bedroom closet and threw the gun out the window into the home’s backyard. After retrieving the gun, the boy jumped into a parked vehicle in the home’s backyard.
It’s here that the facts become murky: 3-year-old Elijah arrived some time later and entered the car where the 11-year-old was in and was shot in the face.
“I cannot remember a time where we have charged someone so young with taking a life,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement, according to the Detroit Free Press. “Very unfortunate and very tragically, the alleged facts in this case demanded it.”
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At a preliminary hearing, a court referee read the charges against the boy; besides manslaughter, the boy was charged with felony firearm possesion. The boy’s attorney, Beverly Anthony Walker, addressed the courtroom, saying the 11-year-old had not been in school regularly and was not competent to stand trial.
The boy faces a pre-trial hearing on Monday. Bond in the case was set at $5,000.
