The death of Renisha McBride, a 19-year-old African-American woman, occurred on November 2, 2013, in Dearborn Heights, Michigan. Renisha McBride had crashed her car and then walked to a neighborhood in Dearborn Heights where she knocked on the door of a house. The homeowner, Theodore Wafer, shot McBride with a shotgun. Wafer contended that the shooting was accidental and that he thought his home was being broken into after he heard her banging on his door at 4:42 in the morning. Renisha's family believes she was knocking on his door for help. An autopsy found that she died of a single gunshot wound to the face.
Defense attorney Cheryl Carpenter reminded the judge that this was not a premeditated murder. A recording of the 911 call Wafer placed after the shooting offered no clarity as to why he shot McBride.
“Uh, yes.... I just shot somebody on my front porch with a shotgun, banging on my door,” he said. He then gave his address, and, sounding a little confused, thanked the dispatcher and hung up.
Wafer lived in Dearborn Heights, a middle-class, predominantly white suburb west of Detroit. He testified during the trial that crime was rising in his neighborhood and said he “didn’t want to cower” in his own home. Tensions between neighboring towns and counties and the city of Detroit have been running high for as long as the city has struggled economically.
Prosecutors had recommended a sentence of 17 years in Wafer’s case. He was found guilty of second-degree murder, which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years, and two additional years were sought because a gun was involved.
Insolent Politics
Sources: The Huffington Post, The L.A. Times
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| 19-year Renisha McBride was fatally shot in the back of the head when knocking on a homeowner's door seeking help. |
“Uh, yes.... I just shot somebody on my front porch with a shotgun, banging on my door,” he said. He then gave his address, and, sounding a little confused, thanked the dispatcher and hung up.
Wafer lived in Dearborn Heights, a middle-class, predominantly white suburb west of Detroit. He testified during the trial that crime was rising in his neighborhood and said he “didn’t want to cower” in his own home. Tensions between neighboring towns and counties and the city of Detroit have been running high for as long as the city has struggled economically.
Prosecutors had recommended a sentence of 17 years in Wafer’s case. He was found guilty of second-degree murder, which carries a minimum sentence of 15 years, and two additional years were sought because a gun was involved.
Insolent Politics
Sources: The Huffington Post, The L.A. Times
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