FLINT (WWJ) — A Flint man has been charged under Michigan's new "safe storage" laws after his 2-year-old daughter shot herself in the face with an unsecured gun on Valentine's Day, the day after the law took effect.
Michael Tolbert, 44, is the first person to be charged under the new law, Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton announced Tuesday.
He is also facing charges of first-degree child abuse, felon in possession of a firearm, felon in possession of ammunition, lying to a police officer and four counts of felony firearm. He also received a fourth-time habitual offender notice.
The charges stem from a shooting that happened on Feb. 14, one day after the new law officially went on the books, along with new laws on background checks, so-called "red flag laws" and restrictions for those convicted of domestic violence.
Under Michigan's safe storage law, people are required to keep any firearms being stored or left unattended on a premises unloaded and either locked with a trigger-locking mechanism or stored in a locked storage container.
Leyton said Flint police officers were called to Hurley Hospital on Feb. 14 after the girl's father took her there following the shooting. After speaking with Tolbert, authorities executed a search warrant at his home, where they found blood in the living room that appeared to be coming from the home's front bedroom.
Inside the bedroom investigators found flood and brain matter on the floor, directly next to a small, toddler-sized folding chair, Leyton said. Two guns — a revolver and a semi-automatic pistol — were found on the bed, the prosecutor said.
The pistol had a live round in the chamber and multiple in the magazine, while the revolver had one fired casing and additional live rounds inside. No gun locks or safes were found in the bedroom, according to Leyton.
The girl remained in critical condition, as of Tuesday afternoon, nearly a week after the shooting. Leyton said the bullet went through her right eye and out the back of her skull. At best, she will lose her right eye, Leyton said.
"Why this is so important is, we've charged child abuse in the first degree, which is a life felony. In order to prove that beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law, we have to prove as prosecutors that the defendant did knowingly or intentionally cause the physical harm to the child. And proving something happened knowingly and intentionally is a steep hill for a prosecutor in 2024," Leyton said at Tuesday's press conference.
Thanks to the safe storage law, Leyton says prosecutors will now have to prove the following:
"That (Tolbert) did store or leave a firearm unintended on premises under his control when he knew or reasonably should have known that a minor was or was likely to be present on the premises and did fail to store the firearm in a locked box or container and/or keep the firearm unloaded and lock the firearm with a locking device that is properly engaged to render the firearm inoperable by any individual other than the owner or an authorized user. And that as a result a minor obtained the firearm, discharged it and inflicted serious impairment of a body function upon the minor."
"That is a much more straightforward situation than the child abuse charge," Leyton said.
State Sen. Kristen McDonald-Rivet, who sponsored the safe storage legislation, said Tuesday it's meant to stop a public health crisis harming kids everywhere.
"We have reached a place in this country that the No. 1 cause of death of children is gun violence. Not car accidents, not cancer — gun violence," she said.
Under the law, given the girl was seriously injured, Tolbert could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $7,500.
