KALAMAZOO, MI — Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting had to pause for a moment when asked to consider how the shooting death of 13-year-old Michael Day on Memorial Day has affected him.
Getting, who called a press conference Thursday to announce that 15-year-old Kalamazoo resident Victor Manuel Garay has been charged with one count each of open murder and felony firearm possession in connection to Day’s death, said the incident has had a significant impact on him, as it should everyone in the community.
“To be here in Kalamazoo and stand here at the podium and talk about the death of a 13-year-old who was shot on one of our streets, allegedly by a 15-year-old, and to think about those as eighth graders and ninth graders … Does it affect me? Of course it affects me,” Getting said during the 20-minute news conference. “Yes it has an effect on me. I think it has an effect on everyone; it should.”
Day, a 13-year-old Milwood Middle School student, was shot and killed near the intersection of Race Street and Lay Boulevard in the Edison neighborhood just after 7 p.m. Monday. A large group of people had been arguing and fighting in the moments before the gunfire broke out, witnesses said.
Getting must now decide whether to charge Garay as an adult or juvenile, a decision he said won’t be easy. Getting formally requested Thursday that Garay’s preliminary examination be delayed until June 3 at 1:30 p.m. to allow him additional time to decide how to charge Garay, who also lives in the Edison neighborhood.
Getting said he will strongly consider Garay’s past criminal history and any interactions with police when making his decision.
If charged as an adult, Garay could face life in prison without the possibility of parole, Getting said. If he is sentenced as a juvenile, the court system would lose jurisdiction of him when he turns 18.
Getting said he couldn’t speak to the nature of the confrontation between the two teens or what led up to the shooting. He also couldn’t confirm if the weapon allegedly used by Garay had been recovered.
Kalamazoo police had arrested an 18-year-old man who they believe was involved in the shooting on Tuesday, but Getting declined to comment on other potential suspects in the shooting, saying only that the case is still under investigation at this time.
When asked if this shooting and other recent crimes in the Edison neighborhood may signal that the area is unsafe, Getting said he considers this tragedy to be an exception, not the rule.
“I lived three to four blocks from where this happened, lived right on the corner of Stockbridge and Race Street for a year or two years,” Getting said, adding that he drove around the neighborhood on Tuesday after Day’s shooting to get a sense for where it took place. “I know right where this happened, I’ve lived there, I’ve walked up and down those sidewalks. … Yes, the neighborhood is safe.”
Garay is expected to be held in the Kalamazoo County Juvenile Home until his preliminary hearing date, Getting said. If the juvenile home is determined to be unable to house Garay, he would be moved to the Kalamazoo County Jail where he would be separated from adult inmates due to his age.
This wasn’t the first time this year Day had been shot.
On April 6, officers responded to the intersection of Lake Street and Maywood Avenue after Day was struck in the back by a bullet, Kalamazoo Public Safety Assistant Chief Donald Webster confirmed after the press conference.
Day told officers at the time that he had just left a party in the 600 block of Carr Street around 11:40 p.m. when he heard a gunshot and realized he had been struck in the back.
Day was later transported to Bronson Methodist Hospital for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. No suspects have been charged in relation to that shooting.
Members of Day’s family were present during the press conference, but declined to comment on the shooting outside of mentioning a rally will be held at 6 p.m. Sunday at the intersection Hays Park Avenue and Race Street. Sunday would have been Day’s 14th birthday.
A visitation for Day will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. Monday in Kalamazoo at Vanguard Church, 2020 Fulford St.
His funeral is scheduled for the following day at 3 p.m. in Fulton at Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Community Center, 1488 Mno-Bmadzewen Way.
Alex Mitchell covers county government and taxes for the Kalamazoo Gazette.