A Detroit mother is facing multiple criminal charges after police say an unsecured handgun left inside a parked van led to the tragic death of her 6-year-old daughter.
Tonya Charisse-Annice Johnson, 41, has been charged with a firearms safe storage violation, three counts of second-degree child abuse and four counts of felony firearm following the March 2 shooting, according to the Detroit Police Department.
Authorities say the devastating incident unfolded in the middle of the day outside a restaurant on Harper Avenue.
At approximately 12:06 p.m., officers responded to reports of a shooting involving a young child in the parking lot of the Farmer John Food Center. When police arrived, they found a 6-year-old girl suffering from a gunshot wound to the head.
Emergency responders rushed the child to a nearby hospital, but she later died from her injuries.
Investigators say the shooting occurred while Johnson had stepped away from her vehicle and entered a nearby restaurant, leaving all five of her children alone inside the van.
The children ranged in age from just 2 years old to 11 years old.
According to police, Johnson’s 11-year-old son allegedly discovered an unsecured handgun inside the vehicle. Authorities say the boy fired the weapon, striking his younger sister in the head.
Police said the shooting appeared to be accidental, but officials stressed that the tragedy was entirely preventable.
“This was preventable,” Detroit First Assistant Police Chief Charles Fitzgerald told local station WXYZ. “We have safe storage for a reason.”
Fitzgerald urged gun owners to take proper precautions, emphasizing that firearms must always be secured when children are present.
“Secure your weapons,” he said. “A 6-year-old girl that will no longer go to school. She can’t grow up to be a Detroit police officer or work for any of the media outlets. It is really, really sad, but it’s preventable.”
The case has also drawn strong condemnation from prosecutors in Wayne County, who described the circumstances surrounding the girl’s death as among the most disturbing gun storage cases they have encountered.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said investigators later discovered additional unsecured firearms inside Johnson’s home during the course of their investigation.
“The alleged facts of this case are among the worst child safe storage cases that we have seen,” Worthy said in comments to CBS News.
She added that the trauma experienced by the surviving children will likely remain with them for the rest of their lives.
“This will affect these children forever,” Worthy said. “The loss of the life of one of their siblings in a closed compartment of the defendant’s car cannot be unseen.”
Authorities have not publicly identified the young victim or her brother.
Johnson now faces multiple felony charges connected to the case, and the investigation remains ongoing.
