High school defendants waive court hearing in shooting
Man left paralyzed in Sept. 15 incident
Four Warren Woods Tower High School students accused of shooting and paralyzing a man near the school have waived their right to a preliminary examination in district court.
The four youths, two aged 15 and two aged 16, face a Jan. 4 arraignment in front of Joseph Toia of Macomb County Circuit Court after waiving their right to the probable cause hearing Dec. 5 in 37th District Court in Warren.
The defendants are accused of shooting a 26-yearold man with whom they arranged a deal to purchase marijuana last September. Police said at the time the shooting left the man paralyzed from the neck down.
The defendants — Laron C. Hansend and Eddie B. Dudley, both 16, and Noah L. Brown and Kaden K. Butler, both 15 — are all charged with assault with intent to murder, armed robbery and conspiracy to commit armed robbery, all life felonies. Hansend, Budley and Brown also face a charge of felony-firearm possession, which carries a mandatory penalty of two years in prison.
The defendants remain in the county Juvenile Justice Center in lieu of bond. Three excluding Butler were given bonds of $750,000. Butler’s bond is $250,000. His attorney, Odetella Odetella, said Thursday attorneys are still reviewing the evidence and no resolution to the cases has been worked out.
Police said the group planned the robbery for a week before committing it at about 3:10 p.m. Sept. 15 at Martin and Bunert roads as school was letting out for the day. Three of the defendants were armed during the incident, police said. The victim, who was driving a blue sedan, was shot in the throat, arm and leg before crashing into a resident’s front lawn, police said.
Witnesses told officers they saw three suspects run from the scene after the shooting.
The incident resulted in two-hour lock downs at the high school, an elementary school and the nearby Macomb Community College South Campus.
Police Commissioner William Dwyer said at the time 30 officers worked “relentlessly” to investigate the shooting and make arrests without tips from the public.