A five-year-old boy in Michigan was placed in the custody of Child Protective Services after holding a loaded handgun while answering the door to police officers.
The officers arrived at the child’s home in Battle Creek, about 121 east of Detroit, on Saturday to serve a subpoena. When the child first answered the door, he had a large knife in his hand, according to a news release from the Battle Creek Police Department.
A cadet then told the child to ask a parent to come to the door. The child disappeared for a few moments and returned with the firearm. The cadet then disarmed the child, the release states.
Patrol officers later responded to the address and found two adult males and one adult female inside. They were detained and taken to the police department for questioning.
Five children ranging in age from six months to eight years were turned over to Child Protective Services as a result of the handgun incident and conditions inside the home. One child was transported to a hospital in Kalamazoo because of health concerns.
The home where the family lived has been condemned by code compliance. According to the statement, the Calhoun County Prosecutor’s Office is pursuing weapon charges and neglect charges against the adults in the home.
News 8, a local media outlet, reported a man was arrested at the same residence for alleged domestic violence-related crimes earlier this month.
The woman who was arrested was allegedly living with the father of one of her children and his friend at the home, the woman’s father told the outlet. Her father said she’d allegedly been beaten at the home and notified police.
“She was a single mother with five kids trying to do the best that she can after what happened with her baby’s daddy throwing all of the kids’ stuff out and everything and having to scrape through the snow to find them,” the woman’s father told News 8. It wasn’t immediately clear what the man was referring to.
“I love my daughter, I love my grandkids, I want to see everyone back together as a family, that’s all.”
