Wayne County prosecutor files 14 felony counts on "after-hours" club shooting investigation
A Detroit man is facing multiple felony charges after prosecutors say a dispute over a missing cellphone escalated into a mass shooting that left three people dead and four others injured at an illicit after-hours party on Detroit's west side.
Christopher Rafael Gouch, 25, of Detroit, will face arraignment Friday in 36th District Court on three counts of premeditated murder, four counts of assault with intent to murder, and seven counts of felony firearm, Worthy said.
Gouch was arraigned and remanded to jail on Friday morning.
"Some of the most tragic events occur because a totally unrelated event spirals completely out of control. The alleged evidence in this case speaks to exactly that: women who could not control their anger led to violence among them and that led to the shooting of seven people. This was unnecessary and ridiculous and now three people will never see another day," Worthy said.
According to investigators, the shooting stemmed from a fight at a location described as an "after-hours" party spot. Worthy said during what she called an "illicit after-hours party" that a verbal argument began among some women after a phone allegedly went missing.
The fight among the women continued outside the venue before the confrontation further escalated to include the three men who were fatally shot, as well as Gouch, who came with a firearm, prosecutors say. Gouch fired multiple shots, killing three people and injuring four, and then fled the scene, according to prosecutors.
Gouch's defense attorney, Ryan Robinson, argued the shooting was an act of self-defense and defense of others.
"He was helping someone who was being assaulted by multiple people, who he believed may have been pretty violently harmed, in danger of potentially dying themselves," Robinson told the court.
Gouch is due back in court for a probable cause conference on Oct. 9, with a preliminary examination to follow on Oct. 15.
The victims
The Wayne County Prosecutor's Office said those killed in the shooting were Ansley Harris Jr., 45, and Donahvan Gray, 36, both of Detroit, and Kevin Scott, 63, of Belleville. Prosecutors said Harris was working security at the party while Gray was a DJ for the event. Scott was attending the party, authorities said.
When police arrived, all three were found in a vacant lot north of the home, injured by multiple gunshot wounds.
Those injured in the altercation were a 32‑year‑old woman and a 25‑year‑old man of Redford, and a 30‑year‑old man and a 28‑year‑old woman of Detroit.
The shooting investigation
A SpotShotter notification alerted police about 7:21 a.m. Sunday to possible gunfire at the home near Eaton Avenue and Prest Street. Police Chief Todd Bettison said on Tuesday the three men who died were "approximately 30 and up." Four others, two men and two women, were privately taken to a hospital after the shooting with injuries.
Bettison also said the home where the shooting occurred was under investigation, adding that police have taken seven calls for service to the address. It's unknown what the nature of those calls is.
The Detroit Police Department made an arrest in the case earlier this week.
Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield assigned the Mayor's Office of Neighborhood and Community Safety to arrange wraparound services as appropriate for the residents and families affected by the shooting.
Police asked anyone with information about the incident to contact Crime Stoppers of Michigan at 800-SPEAK-UP.
