A Michigan mother of five is facing serious charges following the death of her 6-year-old daughter. Tonya Charisse-Annice Johnson, 41, reportedly left her five kids, ages 2 to 11, alone in her car while she ran inside a Detroit restaurant to get food. While Johnson was inside, one of her children reportedly got hold of a gun and shot his sister. Emergency responders arrived shortly thereafter. Medics took the child to an area hospital, where she later died. This poor little girl didn’t have to die this way.
WXYZ reported that yellow tape surrounded the parking lot of the Farmer John Food Center in the 9700 block of Harper Avenue on March 2, 2026. Police arrived just after noon after receiving reports of shots fired. Sadly, they found a young girl with an apparent gunshot wound to the head caused by her 11-year-old brother, according to a news release posted on social media.
Charles Fitzgerald with the Detroit Police Department told WXYZ, “This was preventable” and the child never should have died.
“We have safe storage for a reason. Secure your weapons. A 6-year-old girl that will no longer go to school,” Fitzgerald explained. “She can’t grow up to be a Detroit police officer or work for any of the media outlets. It is really really sad but it’s preventable.”
As much as we feel sad for Johnson, she should have kept the gun on her person and away from her children.
“My heart goes out to the mom. This is not an intentional act. No one I’m sure was expecting anything like this but the most important part is gun safety,” Tamara Smith, Cease Fire Detroit program manager, told WKYZ.
She added that having a gun is a huge responsibility and parents need to be particularly diligent when it comes to guns and children. “Gun safety is extremely important so even if you have an unsecured weapon, to know I better go secure it,” Smith shared.
The mother faces multiple charges related to the fatal shooting. “Johnson has been charged with Firearms – Safe Storage Violations – Premises Under Individual’s Control – Minor Present and Inflicted Death Upon Self or Another, three counts of Second-Degree Child Abuse, and four counts of Felony Firearm,” according to the police news release.
This sounds like a truly heartbreaking accident. Sadly, kids and guns don’t mix. The guilt Johnson will likely feel forever is probably the worst punishment a mother could ever have in a situation like this.
