Officers from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department, Rochester Hills Fire Department and other jurisdictions stand guard after a shooting at the Brookland Plaza splash park in Rochester Hills, Michigan, on Saturday, June 15, 2024. Shooting scene.
Katie Kildee/AP/Detroit News
hide title
Switch title
Katie Kildee/AP/Detroit News
ROCHESTER HILLS, Miss. — A gunman opened fire at a splash pad in suburban Detroit on Saturday, injuring nine people, including two young children and their mother. Law enforcement was tracked to a suspect’s home where the man died from a gunshot wound, authorities said.
An 8-year-old boy was shot in the head Saturday night and was in critical condition, Oakland County Sheriff Mike Bouchard said at a news conference. The boy’s mother suffered injuries to her abdomen and legs and is in critical condition, while his 4-year-old brother suffered leg injuries and is in stable condition.
Authorities initially said they believed as many as 10 people suffered gunshot wounds in the Rochester Hills shooting, but that number was revised after checking with local hospitals.
The other six victims, all aged 30 or older, are in stable condition, Bouchard said. They include a couple and a 78-year-old man.
The shooting happened just after 5 p.m. at a city park that features a recreation area with non-slip surfaces where people can turn on sprayers and fountains to play. , the gunman drove to the park, walked to the splash pad, and fired as many as 28 times, stopping multiple times to reload.
The sheriff said at least one witness reported that the gunman appeared to have used two handguns during the attack, but this has not been confirmed.
In the chaos, “people were falling, getting hit, trying to run away,” Bouchard said. “Unfortunately, all of us in law enforcement have seen too many horrific things.”
The shooter “was obviously not in a hurry. He was just calmly walking back to his car,” the sergeant said.
Bouchard said police were alerted to the 911 call reporting the shooting because the agency uses a service that simultaneously sends emergency calls to first responders. He said an officer was on scene within two minutes.
Bouchard said the first arriving officers immediately began providing first aid, including applying a tourniquet. Police were also able to quickly locate a possible address and a car matching the suspect’s vehicle was located at the residence.
Bouchard said deputies surrounded the house and attempted to make contact with the suspect inside, but were unsuccessful. They sent a drone into the home and went inside to find the suspect dead.
Another weapon was found inside. The sheriff said the quick control of the suspect may have prevented “Chapter Two” of the shooting and showed a photo of a semi-automatic rifle on a table in the home.
Bouchard said the suspect does not live in Rochester Hills and investigators do not yet know why he went to the splash pad.
Officials did not release the man’s name. Bouchard described him as a 42-year-old white man and said officials believed he lived with his mother. Bouchard said the man’s mother has been notified.
“As for the ‘why’, I don’t know,” Bouchard said of the shooter’s motive.
Authorities found a handgun, three empty magazines and 28 spent shell casings in the splash pad. Bouchard said they found a semi-automatic rifle and another handgun inside the home that the suspect is believed to have used to kill himself.
Police taped off the area, and dozens of yellow evidence markers were placed on the ground between colorful folding chairs.
“When I got to the scene, I started crying because I knew what the paddling pool was supposed to be,” a place where people gather and play, said Rochester Hills Mayor Bryan Barnett.
Barnett said the shooting was a reminder “that we live in a fragile place.”
Rochester Hills is about 15 miles (24 kilometers) south of Oxford, where a 15-year-old shot and killed four high school students in 2021.
On Sunday, local public service offices will provide counseling services to anyone in need, Bouchard said. He said the Oxford Recovery Center, established to assist those affected by the 2021 Oxford High School shooting, is still operating and can provide assistance to community members.
“Our most fervent hope, at least in his opinion, is a speedy recovery for all of the injured victims,” Bouchard said. “None of us could have anticipated such a tragedy over Father’s Day weekend and the family will forever be deeply traumatized. Impact.”
Saturday’s shooting occurred at the end of the first week of summer vacation for Rochester Community Schools students.
Bouchard called it “a punch in the gut” for the county.
“We’ve been through a lot of tragedy,” the chief said. “You know, we don’t even fully understand what happened in Oxford. And, you know, now we’re dealing with another complete tragedy.
Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer said on the social platform X that she was heartbroken after learning of the shooting and was in contact with local officials.
