Family of slain boy wonders ‘what’s taking so long’ for charges
NEWAYGO, Mich. (WOOD) — The shooting death of a 5-year-old boy by his 6-year-old cousin with their grandfather’s shotgun has pitted one side of a family against the other.
Braxton Dykstra was shot April 1 at the home of his grandparents on his mom’s side in Newaygo County’s Garfield Township. His dad’s side is now demanding justice, wondering why, nearly three weeks after the shooting, criminal charges haven’t been filed.
“My son’s gone. Something needs to be done,” Braxton’s father Domynic Dykstra told Target 8 Friday. “I don’t care if they’re the grandparents. Yes, they’re grieving, but it was their negligence.”
Gun ‘never loaded,’ owner said after 5-year-old shot
Braxton was shot and killed by his young cousin, who had picked up his maternal grandfather’s 12-gauge shotgun.
“This has definitely torn a wedge between both families, definitely,” Shawn Dykstra, Braxton’s grandmother on his dad’s side, said.
“I understand that everybody involved is going through pain and grief, but somebody needs to be held accountable for taking our baby, and he can’t come back,” she said.
The owner of the gun, identified by relatives as the grandfather on the mom’s side, has told police he used the pump-action, 12-gauge Remington shotgun for protection and to shoot critters.
He said it was unloaded and the safety was on when he left it in a corner of his bedroom, where the kids were watching a movie, according to a report obtained by Target 8. He told police he had no idea how it got loaded.
Troopers said they found no gun lock or safe for storing firearms in the house.
“Anybody who uses a gun for self-defense, that gun’s loaded,” Shawn Dykstra said. “If it wasn’t loaded, what was the purpose of having the safety on that he said he had on? A 6-year-old does not know how to turn a safety off on a gun, and I’m sorry, I do not believe that a 6-year-old child loaded that gun.”
‘Lost a big part of me’: Dad picks up ashes after son, 5, shot
A young witness told police the cousin picked up the gun, said, “I’m going to shoot you,” then accidentally pulled the trigger. Braxton was struck by birdshot.
Michigan State Police turned over its investigation to the Newaygo County Prosecutor’s Office on April 9, eight days after the shooting.
A new state law requires gun owners to store weapons unloaded and locked in the presence of minors. If a minor fires a weapon, leading to death, the gun owner can face up to 15 years in prison.
“We want to know what’s taking so long,” Braxton’s father said. “I’m getting angry that nothing’s getting done. And you put a law out there, that’s the law, action needs to be taken.”
The office manager at the Newaygo County Prosecutor’s Office said the case was still under review to determine if charges should be filed.
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