Daijiworld Media Network - Michigan
Michigan, Aug 17: A 13-year-old girl who was shot four times in a deadly shooting spree in Michigan helped police identify the suspected gunman after managing to call 911 despite her critical injuries.
The shooting occurred on Friday, August 14, in Missaukee County, northern Michigan. Michigan State Police said officers initially responded to a home on South LaChance Road in Lake Township after reports of a shooting. They found three people dead and the critically injured 13-year-old girl at the residence. She was taken to a hospital for treatment.
According to reports, the girl called 911 after being shot and identified the suspected attacker as 39-year-old Chad Hickman. Her information helped authorities quickly establish the suspect's identity and launch a search for him.
The girl was initially in critical condition but was later reported to be stable. Her family has praised her actions, with her grandfather describing her as a hero for alerting police despite suffering multiple gunshot wounds.
The attack began at the family home, where the girl was reportedly among those targeted. Her mother, Amanda Everitt, 40, and her 16-year-old brother, Eric, were killed, according to family accounts reported by US media. The identities and relationships of victims were not immediately confirmed by authorities in their initial statements.
Hickman fled the first scene, triggering a large-scale manhunt involving Michigan State Police, aviation and canine units and other agencies. Authorities subsequently found another victim, a 53-year-old man, at a separate residence in the county.
Hickman's vehicle was later tracked to a wooded area near Whitlock Lake in Caldwell Township. Police found Hickman dead there alongside a 29-year-old woman who was also a victim. All of the deceased suffered fatal gunshot wounds, according to authorities.
In total, six people died in the shooting spree, including Hickman. The other five victims included a 16-year-old boy, a 40-year-old woman, a 45-year-old man, a 53-year-old man and a 29-year-old woman. The 13-year-old girl was the sole known survivor of the shootings and was later reported to be in stable condition.
The motive for the shootings remains unclear. Authorities have not publicly established the relationship between Hickman and all of the victims, although relatives and acquaintances have provided additional accounts about his personal history.
Court records show Hickman had a criminal history. He pleaded guilty in 2024 to misdemeanor charges involving child abuse and contributing to the delinquency of a child stemming from an earlier incident. He had also been involved in a contentious divorce, with court records and people who knew him describing a history of aggressive or threatening behaviour.
Reports have also quoted Hickman's former wife, Katie Frye, as describing him as controlling and violent during their relationship. However, some details about the victims' relationships with Hickman have not been independently confirmed by police.
Michigan State Police said the investigation remains ongoing. Authorities have been examining multiple crime scenes as they work to establish the sequence of events, the motive and the precise relationships between the suspect and victims.
The 13-year-old's decision to contact emergency services despite her injuries was crucial in the early stages of the investigation. Her identification of Hickman gave police a name to pursue while the suspect was still at large and helped authorities mount the subsequent search.
The shooting has shocked the rural Missaukee County community, with Michigan State Police describing the situation as heartbreaking and saying investigators remain committed to conducting a thorough investigation.