Teenage Girl Shot Dead On Doorstep While Seeking Help At House After Car Crash!

The homeowner told police he thought 19-year-old Renisha McBride was trying to break into his house and that his shotgun accidentally discharged, hitting her in the face.

Tragic: Renisha McBride's funeral order of service

 

A teenage girl was shot dead on the doorstep of a house while seeking help after a car crash.

Renisha McBride, 19, knocked on the door of a house in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn Heights at around 2.30am on Saturday after she was involved in a car accident.

The homeowner told police he thought the young woman was trying to break into his house and that his shotgun accidentally discharged, hitting her in the face, Dearborn Heights Police Lieutenant James Serwatowski said.

Miss McBride died of her wounds on the front porch.

Family and friends held a rally in her honour on Thursday evening, amid questions about what could have lead to her death.

Answers: Renisha's mum Monica McBride and dad Walter Ray Simmons

 

About 40 people gathered outside the police station in Dearborn Heights demanding justice for Renisha.

"We don't want this death shuffled aside. We want a full investigation to happen now," community activist David Bullock, who helped organize the event, said in an interview following the demonstration.

In a statement released before the vigil, McBride's family questioned the actions of the homeowner, who has not been identified by police.

"The alleged assailant did not, according to reports, immediately notify the police that the shooting had taken place," the statement said. "It was reported that instead neighbors contacted police about the shooting."

Serwatowski did not say how police were contacted about the shooting.

Laid to rest: Pallbearers carry Renisha's coffin

 

Police were still investigating the case, which they plan to turn over to the Wayne County prosecutor for possible charges, Serwatowski said.

The Detroit chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People suggested in a written statement that racial profiling could have played a role in the case.

Miss McBride was black and police have declined to discuss the race of the homeowner.

"Was this a racial profiling?" the organisation said. "Was this shooting warranted when the evidence indicates that Ms. McBride had no weapon, created no disturbance, threatened no break-in, or demonstrated no disrespect to the household in question?"

A funeral for Renisha, who according to her family worked for the Ford Motor Company, was held on Friday.

A Daily  Mirror report.