Charges against Detroit man Euric Butler, who was filmed pointing a gun at another man holding a baby in a gas station, have been dropped.
Detroit officials dismissed the charges against Butler–including felonious assault, firearm, and brandishing a gun in public. During a preliminary hearing on July 21, the man carrying his baby didn’t show up to court that day.
On Father’s Day, the unidentified man ran into a Valero gas station to hide while holding his sleeping seven-month-old child. The gas station clerk, Adam Albamarki, told WXYZ that shortly after the father ran into the establishment, a guy wielding a handgun walked inside.
Video footage of the incident revealed that as the gunman attempted to shoot the 27-year-old, his weapon jammed, which enabled the father to slap the gun away with his child in hand. The Detroit father then pushed the gunman out of the station and locked its door, prompting the suspect to flee.
Detroit Police Commander Michael Chambers reportedly said that before the incident, the two men had an altercation just a few blocks away from the Valero gas station.
“About a block away from this location, there at Tyerman and Humble. He had accounted this individual [in what] appears [to have been] some type of argument unknown at this time. We still are early in the investigation and trying to work [backward],” Chambers said.
He added that the surveillance video of the entire incident was “difficult to watch.”
“It’s difficult to watch. I mean, it’s just no regard for human life or for the life of a child.”
A 911 operator also revealed that the man holding his baby called to say he was stabbed, as his right arm was injured, reports said.
Detroit police later identified Butler as the suspected gunman following their search to find a gun at a west side home.
