A 22-year-old Kalamazoo man is facing six felony charges after authorities say he opened fire during a baby shower at a Girl Scouts facility, injuring two people and hiding in a lower-level closet before police arrested him.
Pharrell Norman Stacy was arraigned Monday on multiple charges including two counts of assault with intent to murder, three counts of felony firearm and one count of discharging a firearm in a building causing injury.
Judge Richard Santoni described the allegations during the arraignment, saying Stacy is accused of shooting two people identified in court as Tyrone Lewis Jr. and Devon Brown, both 25 years old.
The shooting occurred at the Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan training center on West Maple Street during what authorities said was a baby shower. The building was being rented out at the time for a private event.
KDPS said a 25-year-old man outside the main entrance had been shot in both legs while another 25-year-old man was located inside the building with gunshot wounds to his chest and lower body. Both were taken to the hospital. One man has since been released while the other remains in stable condition according to KDPS.
Investigators found a firearm at the scene. A motive is still unclear.
Stacy has a prior 2022 assault and battery charge along with several misdemeanor traffic offenses. Bond was set at $100,000 cash with conditions including no contact with victims and no possession of weapons. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for April 30 with a conference set for April 23.
The Girl Scouts Heart of Michigan stated they cannot comment on the situation as there is an active police investigation. No Girl Scout members or staff were harmed during the incident according to their statement.
Residents in the area said the shooting is part of a troubling pattern. Lawrence Wise, a resident who likes to take walks in the area said it is usually pretty peaceful in the neighborhood.
Tom Kopinski, a Kalamazoo resident, said Kalamazoo is not immune to mass shootings and it needs to be addressed. Some residents questioned where responsibility should fall when private events are held in community spaces.
Cradle Kalamazoo, who hosted a different event at the Girl Scouts building earlier in the day, released a statement clarifying that while Cradle hosted an event at that location earlier in the day, the shooting did not occur during their event and none of their event participants were involved.