A 19-year-old man, Tyler Q. Wright, has been charged in connection with the tragic shooting death of 12-year-old Dalilah Batey. The incident happened in his bedroom in Calumet Heights while he was on pretrial release for a previous weapons charge, prosecutors said.
Wright was arrested on Sunday night at his home on the 9200 block of South Harper Avenue. He now faces a felony charge of child endangerment resulting in death. A judge has ordered him to remain in custody.
What Happened?
According to prosecutors, Wright invited a group of children, aged 12 to 14, to his home on Sunday. Later in the evening, more children, including Dalilah, arrived.
The children told police they were smoking marijuana and drinking alcohol. Wright allegedly gave them cannabis to roll and had two guns in his room—one of which had a laser sight and an extended magazine.
Prosecutors said that Wright and two of the children were handling the guns when one of the kids removed the magazine, reinserted it, and “racked the slide” before passing it around.
Dalilah was sitting on the floor while others were on the bed, passing the gun. One of the children was playing with it when it suddenly went off. The bullet hit Dalilah above her right eye, killing her instantly.
The Investigation and Charges
When police arrived, they found conflicting stories from those at the scene. Wright was taken into custody because he had access to multiple firearms.
On Tuesday, prosecutors charged a 14-year-old boy with involuntary manslaughter. According to the court, he was handling a “ghost gun” when he accidentally dropped it on the bed. The gun discharged, fatally shooting Dalilah.
Dalilah was rushed to Comer Children’s Hospital, but she was pronounced dead at 9:19 p.m.
Community Response
On Monday, hundreds of friends, family members, and community members gathered in Auburn Gresham for a candlelight vigil and balloon release in Dalilah’s memory.
Wright is scheduled to return to court on Thursday, while the 14-year-old boy is due back in court on Tuesday.
This heartbreaking tragedy has raised concerns about gun safety and the dangers of firearms being accessible to minors.
