What to know:
- One of the men charged in connection with a 2025 shooting at Skinner Park that took the lives of a 4-year-old and an 18-year-old has been sentenced.
- William Wheeler, the alleged driver in the drive-by shooting, was sentenced to 16 to 40 years in prison after taking a plea deal.
- Brandon Ware, the alleged gunman, has also taken a plea deal and is scheduled to be sentenced Nov. 13.
DETROIT — More than a year after a drive-by shooting at a Detroit playground killed a 4-year-old and an 18-year-old, one of the men responsible has been sentenced.
William Wheeler, 20, was sentenced Friday to 16 to 40 years in prison for his role in the June 2025 shooting at Skinner Park on Detroit’s east side.
He pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and two counts of possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony.
Prosecutors say the shooting stemmed from an argument over a ski mask on a bus on June 27, 2025.
Prosecutors said someone pulled a ski mask off of 19-year-old Brandon Ware, and Ware allegedly responded by getting into a truck driven by Wheeler.
The two drove to Duchess Street, where Ware allegedly opened fire on people gathered at the park.
A stray bullet struck and killed 4-year-old Samir Grubbs. A 17-year-old was also injured in the shooting.
Samir’s mother, Jasmine Grubbs, described her son as a child whose joy was impossible to ignore.
“Even if you were having a bad day. His smile would just, whatever you were mad about, it wasn’t even worth being mad about anymore because that smile just took it all away,” Grubbs said.
Also killed in the gunfire was 18-year-old Daviyon Shelmonson-Bey. His father, Joseph Shelmonson-Bey, said his son jumped in front of another child when the shots rang out.
“He reacted. He reacted to save somebody else. I don’t think he even thought about it. He just did it,” Shelmonson-Bey said.
Charges, sentencing
Wheeler pleaded guilty to the following charges in connection with the shooting:
- Two counts of second-degree murder
- Two counts of possessing a firearm in the commission of a felony
He was sentenced to 16 to 40 years in prison.
Ware, the alleged gunman, also accepted a plea deal and pleaded guilty to 12 charges, including:
- Two counts of first-degree premeditated murder
- One count of assault with intent to murder
- Two counts of discharging a firearm from a vehicle causing death
- One count of discharging a firearm from a vehicle causing injury
- Six counts of felony firearm
Ware is expected to be sentenced Nov. 13.
