Southfield police ask witnesses to come forward in deadly hotel shooting
Southfield Chief of Police Elvin Barren and Oakland County Prosecutor Justin Davis provided an update Wednesday morning on a deadly shooting at a Southfield hotel in February 2024.
The shooting took place on Feb. 11, 2024, at the Westin Hotel at 1500 Town Center. Fifteen-year-old Tyler Johnson, a student at Loyola High School in Detroit, was in a hotel room with four other juveniles when he was shot. Johnson was taken to a hospital in critical condition and later died from his injuries.
Police say the teens were in the hotel room unsupervised after an uncle of one of the teens rented the room.
Investigators found two guns in the waistband of one of the other teens. He was found with a stolen Glock that had an extended magazine and a laser light. The gun was reported stolen out of Flint in June 2022.
Police believe one of the weapons recovered was used in the shooting. While police have physical and circumstantial evidence, they need an eyewitness to step forward. Investigators need to know who was handling the weapon when it was discharged and why it was discharged.
No charges have been filed.
Barren said Wednesday that one of the parents initially came to the station to speak about the status of the investigation. The parent stopped the interview with their child and said they would return at a later date. When police reached back out to the parent, that parent said they'd retained an attorney.
"This is a shared frustration between the prosecutor's office and police department," Barren said.
Barren said all four teens have retained lawyers.
"We're going to continue to plea to these kids and these parents; that's where the focus should be. Certainly, I will stand here ... because I lead this great organization, I will absorb the scrutiny, but the facts are we're ready, but we have to have an eyewitness to his crime, and there are four of them," Barren said.
Barren mentioned Wednesday that his brother died from a shooting in 2007 and that case has gone unsolved, so he said he feels even more motivated to solve this case and find closure for the family.
Anyone with information is asked to call Southfield police at 248-796-5500. People can also call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP to remain anonymous.
