Coach, 70, Shoots Teen Dead With Pistol Outside Detroit High School While Being Robbed
A 70-year-old high school basketball coach reportedly shot and killed a teenager and wounded another with his pistol as they tried to rob him outside the school he worked at, Detroit police stated.
Ernest Robinson, assistant girls' basketball coach at Martin Luther King Jr. High School, was ambushed by two young males on Friday evening while attempting to walk two members of the girls' team outside of King High, stated Officer Cassandra Lewis, a police spokeswoman.
"They announced a robbery, a struggle ensued and he pulled a weapon and fired," said Lewis, according to ABC News.
Lewis said that Robinson is a reserve police officer and possesses a license to carry a concealed weapon.
Michael Scott, 16, who was shot dead by Robinson, was a ninth-grader at the school, according to Steve Wasko, spokesman for Detroit Public. The other male, a 15-year-old, was injured, but his name has yet to be released.
Detroit police homicide investigators did request a warrant this week from the Wayne County prosecutor's office in order to verify that the coach used self-defense.
Prosecutors are currently going over the case in order to determine whether charges should be filed against Robinson, spokesman Mark Bernardi stated. However, he also stated that they wouldn't have a decision on Wednesday.
Priscilla Scott, the mother of the late teenager, told the media that Michael didn't have a gun in his possession.
"I lost my son and I want answers," she said.
ABC 7 Action News reported that the prosecution office's approach to the case is routine, as the police usually forward the information needed to the team after they're done doing their part.
The news station states that police sources say that the shooting appears to be justified and feel that there shouldn't be any charges filed at this point.
Nonetheless, unanswered questions still remain as to whether or not the coach acted too aggressively.