In a distressing incident early Tuesday morning, March 19, in Genesee County, Michigan, Timothy Kildee, age 57, the brother of Michigan Representative Dan Kildee, was fatally shot at his home in Vienna Township.
Genesee County Sheriff Chris Swanson disclosed that the alleged shooter is Timothy’s 27-year-old son, also named Timothy, who is now in police custody facing multiple charges.
The incident unfolded following a domestic dispute reported around 2:50 a.m. in Burton, Michigan. According to police, the suspect had a confrontation with someone and pulled out a gun.
He then fled the scene and contacted his mother, the victim’s ex-wife, who drove him to his father’s residence. Before arriving at his father’s home, he jumped out of his mother’s car.
His parents then began a search for him, after which the victim returned to his home.
Later, the suspect came to his father’s home, and a confrontation occurred, (heard by another son who was in his father’s house), during which the suspect allegedly demanded his father’s wallet and keys before shooting him.
Sheriff Swanson detailed the sequence of events leading up to the tragedy, including the suspect leaving his mother’s moving vehicle, his return to his father’s house, and the subsequent altercation that ended in gunfire.
The suspect then fled in his father’s pickup truck, crashing it about eight minutes later. He sustained serious injuries in the accident, was hospitalized, and is under police watch. The occupants of the other vehicle involved in the crash reportedly suffered minor injuries.
The charges against the suspect, detailed by Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton, include open murder, carjacking, armed robbery, using a firearm during the commission of a felony, carrying a concealed weapon, and possibly a motor vehicle infraction related to the crash. Leyton also mentioned that toxicology reports were pending to confirm suspicions of substance abuse by the suspect, which might have contributed to the events.
Rep. Kildee was informed of the incident by Sheriff Swanson and returned to Michigan from Washington, D.C.
In a heartfelt statement, Rep. Kildee expressed his family’s profound sorrow and requested privacy during this difficult time. “Our family is grieving and heartbroken. There are no words to describe the loss of a beloved brother and family member, especially in such a terrible tragedy. I thank the community for honoring my family’s privacy during this very difficult time,” he wrote on X (Twitter).
The ongoing investigation is looking into the circumstances leading up to the shooting, with Swanson pointing to mental health or substance abuse issues that may have influenced the suspect’s behavior.
