In the summer of 2003, a horrific act of violence shattered a Detroit family and the community. On August 19th, 11-year-old Sharnice Bailey, a young female, was tragically killed inside her home on Ashton Street. Her life, along with those of her younger siblings, 3-year-old Ayana and 1-year-old Lamar, was cut short by their own father.
The children's father, Anthony Bailey, had been estranged from their mother.
On that fateful evening, he called his estranged wife at her job with a chilling and ominous message: 'Watch the news tonight.' Following this call, he used a 12-gauge shotgun to shoot his children in the basement of their home. Sharnice suffered multiple gunshot wounds. After the shootings, Bailey set a fire in the house before fleeing the scene.
When firefighters responded to the blaze, they made the gruesome discovery of the children in the basement. They quickly realized the children had been shot and alerted the police. Miraculously, one of the children, 9-year-old Antonia, was found still alive, though critically injured. Despite her injuries, she was able to identify her father as the perpetrator, telling authorities, 'My daddy did it.'
A massive manhunt was launched for Anthony Bailey. He was apprehended the following day after being spotted walking on a freeway overpass. Bailey was subsequently charged with three counts of first-degree murder, assault with intent to murder for the shooting of his surviving daughter, and arson. He ultimately pleaded no contest to the murder charges and was sentenced to life in prison.
