KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) – A teenager’s quick thinking during the shootings in and around Kalamazoo may have saved her life.
Kalamazoo Public Safety Chief Jeff Hadley told 24 Hour News 8 the girlfriend of 17-year-old Tyler Smith was at the Seelye Kia dealership off Stadium Drive Saturday when the gunman shot her boyfriend and his father, Rich Smith.
Hadley said Smith’s girlfriend stayed inside the family’s vehicle as Tyler and his father examined cars in the dealership’s lot. When the gunfire erupted, Hadley said the girl hid in the back seat and the shooter walked right by her.
Tyler Smith and his father were among the six victims killed in Saturday’s shootings in and around Kalamazoo. Four other women were shot in killed in their vehicles outside the Texas Township Cracker Barrel, including 60-year-old Mary Jo Nye of Battle Creek, her 62-year-old sister-in-law Mary Lou Nye of Baroda, 68-year-old Barbara Hawthorne and 74-year-old Dorothy Brown, both of Battle Creek.
The shootings started around 5:45 p.m. at Meadows Townhomes in Richland Township, where a mother was shot outside in the presence of her three children. Authorities told 24 Hour News 8 the woman was back in surgery Monday. Kalamazoo County Undersheriff Paul Matyas said she remained in serious condition Monday.
A 14-year-old who was initially reported as dead was last listed in critical condition Sunday night.
St. Augustine Cathedral in Kalamazoo will hold a mass starting at 12:10 p.m. Monday to pray for the victims and an end to violence.
The suspected shooter, 45-year-old Jason Dalton of the Kalamazoo area, is expected to be formally charged Monday.