An Ohio grandmother, aged 43, has confessed to shooting her 6-month-old granddaughter in the eye, a startling incident from which the baby astonishingly survived.
Mia Desiree Harris, 43, has entered a guilty plea for felonious assault, according to online court records from Tuesday. Charges concerning supposed assaults on family members were dropped.
Events started unfolding on December 9. At 1:50 a.m., deputies arrived at the 6800 block of Dutch View Court in Liberty Township, located approximately 25 miles north of Cincinnati, following a report of an infant being shot, according to a news release from the Butler County Sheriff’s Office.
The mother informed dispatchers during the 911 call, “My baby’s been shot.” “My baby’s been shot,” reported the local affiliate WXIX.
“Someone shot your baby?” the 911 operator inquired, according to the station’s report.
“Yes … Lord, please save my baby,” she responded.
First responders found the victim with what seemed to be a gunshot wound to the head, as previously reported by Law&Crime. According to Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones, a local Fox affiliate WXIX reported that the baby sustained a gunshot wound to the eye. A child has been hospitalized in critical condition.
According to the Journal-News, her condition has improved significantly.
Harris reportedly tried to harm more than just the infant victim in the family.
The sheriff’s office stated in the release, “During the incident Harris shot at several family members before intentionally shooting the child.”
A criminal complaint submitted to Butler County Area 2 Court reveals that Harris allegedly inflicted “serious physical harm” on another individual, whose identity is protected, by “striking [that person] in the face with a fist.”
“Harris then broke down a locked bedroom door, after firing a handgun through the bedroom door multiple times,” the document states.
Officials report that Harris was swiftly identified as the primary suspect after multiple witnesses recognized her to investigators as the shooter. She escaped before the deputies got there but was apprehended shortly after.
When questioned about her actions, she responded to the deputies, “That was not my grandbaby.” “Sorry, not sorry,” Detective Daniel Turner stated during his court testimony, according to local ABC affiliate WCPO.
She also told investigators that “her family was trying to take all of her money and then leave and she was not going to allow that to happen. They crucified her, so she crucified them,” WCPO reported, citing Turner’s testimony.
Jones spoke candidly about the case with WXIX.
“It wasn’t an accident. It was on purpose. This is one of the most disgusting, vile criminal acts I’ve ever seen, shooting a 6-month-old baby. What makes it even worse is this is the baby’s grandmother,” Jones told the station. “She went and shot this child and doesn’t appear to have any remorse whatsoever. I feel sorry for the baby, the family, everybody that’s dealing with this. The doctors, the life squad people, the deputies, everybody. This is as bad as it gets.”
The sheriff described the case as appalling and stated it was “one of the worst things I’ve seen.””
Harris is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 29, where she could face up to 15 years in prison.