Detroit Man Charged With Murder In 11-Year-Old Shooting Death: Police

Detroit MI

10 June, 2022

3:19 PM

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DETROIT — A Detroit man was charged with murder after police said he fired multiple shots, one of which fatally struck an 11-year-child in a Detroit home, the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office announced Friday. William Trifun Dickerson, 21, was charged with second degree murder, involuntary manslaughter, discharge at a building causing death, careless discharge causing injury or death (a two-year misdemeanor) and four counts of felony firearm. Dickerson was placed in a Detroit jail without bond. If convicted, Dickerson faces up to life in prison for the second-degree murder charge. Officials said Dickerson fired numerous shots from a handgun in a Detroit home's backyard Saturday night when one of the rounds entered a home on the 20290 block of Goulburn Street, fatally striking 11-year-old Saniyah Pugh in the back. Pugh was attending a sleepover at her grandmother's home when she was struck by the stray round, police said. A GoFundMe page was created Pugh, who loved cheerleading, dancing, gymnastics and playing on tick tock. "This is my home. This is somewhere that all my kids and myself should always feel safe," Saniyah's grandmother Lawanda Melton told ABC News. "There's no safety in these schools for these children, there's no safety in their own homes." Dickerson was with a 17-year-old juvenile who also fired the weapon in the backyard, officials said. Police did not identify the juvenile, but he was also arrested by police. "It doesn't matter if you are shooting your gun off on New Year's Eve or shooting at targets in your backyard," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said. "The allegations in this case are yet another tragic reminder of that a bullet has no eyes. Ever."