8-year-old victim in splash pad shooting released from hospital, two victims remain in hospital

Police investigate the scene of a shooting at the Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad on June 15, 2024 in Rochester Hills, Michigan. A gunman reportedly fired 28 rounds from a handgun and wounded up to 10 people before being contained by police in a home a half mile from the park. | Bill Pugliano/Getty Images

All but two victims of the mass shooting over Father’s Day weekend at Brooklands Plaza Splash Pad in Rochester Hills are out of the hospital as the 8-year-old victim was released Friday, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s office.

The 8-year-old boy, who was shot in the head and whose name is not being shared by law enforcement, is one of two children who were shot by a man who police have identified as Michael William Nash, who open fired on families enjoying the splash pad on the sunny afternoon of June 15. The 8-year-old’s brother, age 4, was shot in the thigh and released from the hospital last month. Their mother, age 39, remains hospitalized with wounds to the abdomen and leg.

The sheriff’s office public information officer confirmed Monday to the Advance that law enforcement still hasn’t discovered a motive for Nash’s actions, and they may never find one, as Nash was found dead in his mother’s home after the shooting from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.

An AR platform rifle laying on the kitchen table near Nash led police to believe that there might have been more planned, Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said hours after the shooting.

“We don’t know what the next chapter was gonna be,” Bouchard said at a news conference hours after the shooting. “I believe that because we had quick containment of him that if he had planned to do anything else — and it wouldn’t surprise me because having that [the AR rifle] on the kitchen table isn’t an everyday activity — that there was probably something else, a second chapter potentially.”

The two boys’ mother and another woman, age 30, remain in the hospital, according to the sheriff’s office. A total of seven victims suffering gunshot wounds have been released from hospitals.

The city of Rochester Hills has posted several GoFundMe pages identifying and supporting some of the families who were victims of the shooting, including the two youngest victims and their mom.

Law enforcement have described the scene at the splash pad as chaotic as ice cream and children’s shoes lay strewn behind as families ran for their lives.

One family, the Lafrates, scattered to find safety and a GoFundMe is looking to support the family as the mother, Danielle, was shot protecting their daughter.

Danielle had been carrying her 7-year-old daughter to safety when she was shot in the arm and the back, the GoFundMe and the pair were denied shelter by some nearby businesses. But a “compassionate passerby” motioned for Danielle to get into their car, taking her to the hospital.

The father, Mario, got separated from the couple’s twin teenage daughters in the chaos, but one ran across the street and hid behind some bushes and the other hid behind the nearby ice cream shop.

One GoFundMe for the Jacoud Borges family says husband Carlos, 4,2 and wife Karina, 37, were at the splash pad with their son Luke, 6, a fun summer family outing turned into a nightmare when their family were the first people the shooter saw.

Carlos was shot in the knee and Karina was shot in the hand protecting their son, the GoFundMe said.

“Even though they were injured, they managed to throw themselves at their son, creating a human shield and protecting him,” the GoFundMe reads. “There were minutes of terror, fear, and despair that seemed like an eternity that will never be forgotten.”

The GoFundMe looks to support the family financially as Carlos and Karina underwent surgery for their injuries and Luke deals with the mental health toll of the tragedy.

Support is being sought for another family, a 77-year-old named Richard and his family after he brought his 8-year-old granddaughter Bexley to the splash pad, a GoFundMe says.

A “wonderful” and “fun loving” grandpa, the GoFundMe says, Richard often spends time with his grandchildren. The shooter shot him twice in the abdomen and once in the thigh and Bexley ran to the bathroom and hid with a friend.

Micayla and Eric Coughlin were shot protecting their daughters, ages 2 and 7 months, a GoFundMe for the couple says. The couple had taken their daughters to get ice cream and walked to the splash pad where moments after arriving, the gunshots began.

Because of their heroic actions, their children were protected and able to go home that evening,” the page says.

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