5-Year-Old and 14-Year-Old Among Six Shot in Lansing Mass Shooting; Gunman Opens Fire on Crowd of 30 to 40 People and Flees; Suspect Remains at Large
Michigan Legal Center News Desk | April 24, 2026 | Lansing, Ingham County
Sources: WILX News 10 (Wells Foster, Kyle Beery), WLNS 6 News, Lansing State Journal, Lansing Police Chief Rob Backus press conference — April 23–24, 2026
Note: This is a developing story. The investigation is active, the suspect is at large, and this article will be updated as new information is released by the Lansing Police Department.
Lansing Mass Shooting: 5-Year-Old Among 6 Shot at Hillsdale & Chestnut | The Michigan Legal Center
| QUICK ANSWER: What happened at Hillsdale and Chestnut in Lansing on April 23, 2026? | |
|---|---|
| What happened | Shortly before 10 p.m. on Thursday, April 23, 2026, a gunman walked toward a gathering of 30 to 40 people near a business at the intersection of Hillsdale and Chestnut streets, south of downtown Lansing. He opened fire multiple times into the crowd, then fled the scene on foot. |
| The victims | Six people were shot. A 5-year-old girl was shot in the leg. A 14-year-old girl was grazed on the ear. A 31-year-old man and three women, ages 21, 23, and 35, also sustained gunshot wounds. Lansing Police Chief Rob Backus confirmed all six victims were in stable condition as of Friday morning. All victims except the 14-year-old suffered gunshot wounds to their lower extremities. |
| The suspect | At large. Police have a description of the suspect but have not publicly released it. A K-9 track was attempted but was unsuccessful. No weapons have been recovered. Anyone with information is asked to call (517) 483-4600 and select the investigations option. |
| Second night, same intersection | The same intersection was the site of a separate shooting on Wednesday night, April 22, 2026. A woman believed to be in her 50s, sitting in a car, was shot at in that incident. LPD does not believe the two shootings are connected. No suspect has been arrested in the Wednesday shooting. |
| Police response | Officers responding to the Thursday shooting stopped a vehicle speeding away from the scene. Three of the shooting victims were inside, including the 14-year-old girl, who was rushed to the hospital by officers. The Lansing Fire Department transported other victims. Two victims self-transported to the hospital. |
| Legal rights of the victims | All six shooting victims have rights under Michigan's Crime Victims Rights Act, MCL 780.751, and may be eligible for financial assistance through Michigan's Crime Victim Compensation Program. Civil claims may be available against the shooter, and depending on the circumstances of the gathering and the history of incidents at this location, a premises liability claim against the property owner may also be worth evaluating. |
| Contact | The Michigan Legal Center, Law Offices of Christopher Trainor & Associates: (248) 886-8650 |
A 5-year-old girl was shot in the leg on a Thursday night in Lansing. Her family brought her to that intersection. They did not bring her to a shooting.
Shortly before 10 p.m. on April 23, 2026, a man walked toward a crowd of 30 to 40 people gathered near a business at the corner of Hillsdale and Chestnut streets, south of downtown Lansing. He opened fire. Then he ran.
When the shooting stopped, six people had been hit. The 5-year-old. A 14-year-old girl grazed on the ear. A 31-year-old man. Three women in their twenties and thirties. All six were in stable condition by Friday morning, according to Lansing Police Chief Rob Backus. All were expected to survive.
The person who shot them had not been found by the time this article was published.
The gunman walked toward a gathering of 30 to 40 people and opened fire into the crowd. He then ran from the scene. A K-9 track was attempted but was unsuccessful. No weapons have been recovered.
It was the second straight night Lansing police had been called to the same intersection. On Wednesday, April 22, a woman believed to be in her 50s, sitting in her car at Hillsdale and Chestnut, was shot at. No arrest has been made in that incident either. Police say the two shootings are not believed to be connected. Two unrelated shooters at the same corner on consecutive nights is not a coincidence that answers any questions. It raises them.
What Happened: The Sequence of Events
Officers responding to Thursday night's shooting arrived to find a scene that was still unfolding. A vehicle was spotted speeding away from the area. Officers stopped it. Inside were three of the six shooting victims, including the 14-year-old girl. Officers drove her directly to the hospital rather than waiting for an ambulance.
The Lansing Fire Department transported two other victims. The remaining two victims drove themselves to the hospital.
Chief Backus addressed the community at a press conference on Friday morning. He confirmed all six victims were stable. He confirmed police have a description of the suspect but declined to release it publicly at that time. He said police are not certain why a group of 30 to 40 people had gathered at that intersection, but acknowledged prior incidents at the location.
If you have information about this shooting, Lansing Police are asking you to call (517) 483-4600 and select the investigations option. A 5-year-old is recovering from a gunshot wound. That tip line matters.
Two Nights. Same Corner. No Arrests.
Hillsdale and Chestnut are not new problems for the Lansing Police Department. Chief Backus acknowledged prior incidents at the location on Friday morning. The Wednesday shooting involved a woman sitting alone in her car. The Thursday shooting involved a gunman approaching a crowd and opening fire. Two different scenarios, two different suspects according to the police, at the same intersection on back-to-back nights.
What that pattern means for the community around that corner is not a question the police press conference answered. It is a question that premises liability law is designed to ask.
When a business or property owner is aware of prior incidents of violence at or near their property, and takes no meaningful steps to address that risk, and someone is subsequently shot there, the legal question of whether that property owner shares responsibility for what happened becomes very real. Michigan premises liability law does not require a business owner to prevent every possible crime. It requires them to take reasonable steps to protect people on their property when they know dangerous conditions exist.
A history of prior incidents is exactly the kind of knowledge that activates that duty. What security measures were in place at this location on Thursday night? Had the business or property owner taken any action after the Wednesday shooting? Those questions matter, and they should be documented and preserved before the answers disappear.
What Michigan Law Provides for Every Victim of Gun Violence
The Crime Victims Rights Act (MCL 780.751)
Every person who was shot at Hillsdale and Chestnut on Thursday night has rights under Michigan's Crime Victims Rights Act, MCL 780.751. Those rights include the right to be treated with dignity throughout the criminal process, the right to be notified of proceedings, and the right to be heard at critical stages of the case when a suspect is eventually charged.
These are not passive rights that activate only if a victim speaks up. They are enforceable protections that the system is supposed to provide automatically. If and when a suspect is arrested and charged, these families have a seat in that process. They are not spectators.
Michigan Crime Victim Compensation Program
Michigan's Crime Victim Compensation Program, administered by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, provides financial assistance to victims of violent crime for out-of-pocket expenses not covered by insurance. That includes medical costs, lost wages, and counseling.
For a 5-year-old shot in the leg, the medical expenses and the emotional costs of what she experienced and what her family witnessed will extend well beyond the emergency room visit. This program exists for exactly these situations. Eligible victims can apply through MDHHS. An attorney from the Michigan Legal Center can help navigate that process and ensure the application reflects the full scope of the family's experience.
Civil Claims Against the Shooter
When a suspect is identified and arrested, the shooting victims have the right to pursue civil claims for their injuries separate from the criminal case. A criminal conviction for assault with a dangerous weapon is not required for a civil claim to succeed. The civil standard of proof, more likely than not, is lower than the criminal standard.
A civil judgment against the shooter can cover medical expenses, pain and suffering, emotional trauma, and the lasting impact on the victims' lives. For a 5-year-old who was shot, the calculation of those damages looks decades forward, not just at the immediate medical bills. For the 14-year-old, the 31-year-old man, and the three women, the same framework applies.
A suspect being at large does not close the door on a civil case. It delays it. The moment an arrest is made, the civil clock starts moving.
Premises Liability: The Property Owner's Responsibility
This is the legal avenue that requires the most careful factual development and is the most time-sensitive to investigate.
Michigan premises liability law holds property and business owners to a standard of reasonable care for the safety of people on their premises. When the owner knows or should know that a dangerous condition exists, they have a duty to address it. A history of prior violent incidents at a location is exactly the kind of knowledge that creates that duty.
Chief Backus specifically acknowledged prior incidents at the Hillsdale and Chestnut intersection on Friday morning. A Wednesday night shooting, the night before, happened at the same spot. If a business at that intersection knew about prior violence and failed to take reasonable security measures, and six people were shot in the crowd gathered there on Thursday, the premises liability question is legitimate and worth a legal analysis.
That analysis requires evidence that will disappear quickly: surveillance footage, maintenance records, prior incident reports, and communications between the business and the police. An attorney needs to move fast to preserve what exists.
For the Families: What Comes Next?
Six families woke up Friday morning knowing someone they loved was shot the night before. For the parents of a 5-year-old, there is no framework that makes that ordinary. For the family of a teenager who was grazed by a bullet at an intersection they had no reason to fear, the questions are not abstract. They are immediate and real.
The criminal investigation is in its earliest stages. The suspect is at large. The process that follows an arrest, such as the arraignment, preliminary exam, and trial, can take months. The Michigan Legal Center is not asking these families to think about lawsuits while they are sitting in hospital waiting rooms.
What we are asking is that they know their rights exist, that the legal tools available to them do not expire while the criminal case moves slowly, and that when they are ready to understand their options, someone who has been in this territory before is available to help them navigate it.
We have represented victims of violent crime in Michigan. We have taken civil cases against perpetrators who believed the criminal case was the only accountability they would face. We know how to build a case from crime scene evidence, police reports, and witness accounts. And we know how to walk alongside a family that has already been through enough without adding more weight to what they are carrying.
If you or someone in your family was shot in Lansing Thursday night, or at any other location where violence was allowed to happen because someone failed to act on what they knew, Christopher Trainor and his team are available. The conversation is free. The fee comes only when we recover.
Call (248) 886-8650 to speak with Michigan Legal Center today.
Tips for Lansing Police: Call (517) 483-4600 and select the investigations option.
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