Faith Williams’ sister has spoken about forgiveness as prosecutors pursue an adult murder case against a 15-year-old Detroit boy.
DETROIT, Mich. — The family of 65-year-old Faith Williams is mourning her death after authorities say she was shot by a 15-year-old stranger at an east-side liquor store, a killing that prosecutors say was part of a burst of gunfire that also targeted three other people.
Williams was killed late Aug. 21 at a business in the 15500 block of East Warren Avenue. Another woman was wounded, while prosecutors say two people in a passing vehicle were also fired upon but were not injured. Authorities said Williams, the wounded woman and the defendant did not know one another, and police have not announced a motive.
At a Detroit police news conference several days after the shooting, Williams’ sister, Lucinda Pearson, said the other woman who was wounded was her niece. Pearson said her niece remained hospitalized at that time and asked people to pray not only for her family but also for the teenager accused in the shooting.
Pearson also spoke about forgiveness as her family dealt with Williams’ death. Her comments added a personal dimension to a case that police initially presented as a search for a suspected gunman after a late-night shooting and that has since moved into the court system.
Officers were sent to the East Warren Avenue store at about 11:10 p.m. Aug. 21. They found Williams inside the business and the wounded woman outside. Emergency medical workers pronounced Williams dead at the scene, and the other woman was taken to a hospital.
Prosecutors allege the gunfire did not end with the two women. They say the shooter also fired at a vehicle as it passed the scene with two people inside. Neither occupant was reported injured. Investigators have not publicly identified a dispute or other event that prompted the shooting.
Detroit Police Chief Todd Bettison said before charges were announced that the teenage suspect had not previously been involved in the juvenile justice system. The boy’s brother surrendered him at the Detroit Police Department’s Ninth Precinct on Aug. 22, according to the prosecutor’s office.
The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office later identified the defendant as Isaiah Lamar Gordon, 15, of Detroit. Prosecutor Kym Worthy charged Gordon with first-degree murder, three counts of assault with intent to murder and four counts of felony firearm. She said the case would proceed in adult court.
Worthy called the alleged actions against the victims “unprovoked and unimaginable.” Her office’s decision to charge Gordon as an adult places the teenager in a serious criminal proceeding while leaving the allegations to be tested through the court process.
Gordon was arraigned Aug. 29 in 36th District Court and remanded to the Juvenile Detention Facility. A probable cause conference is scheduled for Sept. 8, followed by a preliminary examination Sept. 15. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Authorities have not announced a motive, leaving one of the central questions surrounding Williams’ death unresolved as the prosecution moves ahead. The court case now turns to the evidence supporting the charges and the legal process that will determine whether Gordon is ordered to stand trial.
Author note: Last updated August 30, 2026.