CHESTERFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WXYZ) — A Chesterfield Township family is devastated after their 2-year-old husky-pit bull mix was shot and killed in their neighborhood. The family lives directly adjacent to Great Oaks Elementary School and say their sense of safety in their quiet neighborhood is shattered.
On Saturday morning, Chelsea Young was doing some last-minute Christmas shopping. Just like most mornings, her husband Jesse let out their dog Stella to their backyard. After about 20 minutes, he went to let Stella back in only to find her covered in blood and dying on their back porch. He immediately called his wife.
"My husband called me and said that 'Stella’s home, somebody has shot her and she is dying on our back porch,'" Chelsea Young said. “I never want anybody to feel what I felt in that moment.”
The family called the Chesterfield Township Police Department, which confirmed Stella had been shot with a handgun.
“It was a pretty clean shot right through both of her lungs, so she bled out internally," Chelsea Young said. “There would’ve been no way that this was a stray bullet.”
The Young family lives near 24 Mile Road and Walnut Drive. Their backyard is open and there are no fences that separate neighbors. They say Stella is known to wander through neighbor's backyards sometimes, but she never goes far. According to the family, Stella's visits with the neighbors are always met with delight.
“She was so calm and gentle and sweet and just a lovable, lovable dog," Chelsea Young said.
The family's backyard also connects to the Frank C Ruzzin Nature Center, which is on the property of Great Oaks Elementary School, making the incident all the more disturbing.
“Somebody shot and killed my dog, but it comes down to more than that. My kids run these woods and they should have every right to play in my backyard without any scare, any worry. And they took that from us," Chelsea Young said.
The family isn't sure exactly where Stella was shot or by who but even after being shot, Stella made her way back home to say goodbye to her family one last time.
“She ran back home. She knew where she needed to be. She wanted to be home where she was loved the most, and she knew that," Chelsea Young said.
Chesterfield Township Director of Public Safety Brian Bassett says detectives are actively investigating the incident. He says the shooting was an isolated incident and has not happened in other parts of town. No firearm usage is allowed in the area, especially given its proximity to a school.
Bassett is asking the community if they saw or heard anything to give Chesterfield police a call at 586-949-2322.
