A 19-year-old Michigan man without a firearms license stepped up at a Dearborn shopping center in July and fatally shot a suspect who had already killed one person and was still firing. He now knows his fate.
Martinez Long of Oak Park was sentenced last week to two years’ probation over the unlicensed firearm he wielded the day before Independence Day at Fairlane Town Center. There were no charges filed for the shooting itself.
Michigan does not issue carry permits to young adults under 21.
Need for self-defense at Michigan mall was clearly demonstrated
Officers responded to a shots-fired call at the mall just after noon when two individuals were engaged in a fight. Cameron Watkins reportedly shot and killed Keonte Seaborn, and he followed that deadly attack with more rounds, one of which wounded a bystander.
That’s when Long fired at the suspect, who went down and did not survive his injuries.
The judge asked the young man a question that would be laughable if the matter were not deadly serious. “Fortunately, you weren’t injured, but nonetheless, you had a gun there in the first place, which was poor judgment. And what do you need a gun for protection in a mall, in the first place?”
Seriously?
Hero will not have record if he completes probationary term
The judge went on to say he believed the agreement calling for probation, not jail time, “is in the best interest of justice.”
At least His Honor acknowledged that Long had a “valid legal defense” given the circumstances, before again asking the hero why he went to the shopping armed. For the record, the defendant had no criminal background.
Long’s attorney told the court that her client did not intend to use his weapon that day but only had it for protection. “He didn’t instigate the fight. He didn’t start the fight, and he did pull it out for protection of others.”
The good news, besides the lack of time behind bars, is that Long’s record will be expunged if he completes the probation period and abides by its stipulations.
And while one may disagree with Michigan’s licensing regime, it is currently the state law. But this incident and many more starkly demonstrate that arbitrary age restrictions fail to address the self-defense needs of law-abiding young adults.
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