Michigan — A Michigan man was sentenced to decades in prison for fatally shooting his 8-year-old sister in the living room of their apartment because she was “talking back” to him.
Gyasi Stribling was sentenced to between 40 and 60 years in prison on Tuesday. As previously reported by Law&Crime, a jury last month convicted the 24-year-old of first-degree murder in the 2021 death of Bailei Singleton, according to the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office.
“Bailei Singleton should still be here with us today,” Prosecutor Karen McDonald said in a statement following Stribling’s conviction. “Her murder was a tragic event for her family.
It is unconscionable that anyone, let alone an 8-year-old child, could be murdered by a relative in their own home over a minor disagreement. Unfortunately, this case serves as a reminder of how gun violence is a public health epidemic that can take someone’s life in an instant.
Police in Southfield, a Detroit suburb, responded to the 12 North Apartments on January 3, 2021. Bailei was rushed to the hospital in critical condition and died from her injuries several days later.
According to The Detroit News, the then-20-year-old Stribling claimed that his sister was shot during a robbery. However, that story fell apart when two witnesses in the home told a different story.
He also left the gun behind, but cops later discovered it. Stribling was arrested a few days after the murder and has since been held at the Oakland County Jail.
The crime took police by surprise.
“It’s stressful for us,” Southfield police Chief Elvin Barren told the local NBC affiliate WDIV. “It’s stressful for me to stand here before you and control my emotions when talking about an 8-year-old child.”
Barren called it a “heinous crime” and stated that he was “confident” Stribling would face prison time. Barren’s prediction came true, as jurors convicted the defendant following a two-day trial.
