Murder Charge Authorized In Death Of Clinton Township Boy

CLINTON TOWNSHIP, MI — A 29-year-old Mt. Clemens man will likely face four charges in connection with the death of a Clinton Township boy earlier this week. Lamonte Odell Johnson was scheduled to be arraigned Friday at 41-B District Court on charges that include second degree murder as well as three felony weapons counts.

Cameron Dillard died after accidentally shooting himself outside the Newport Arms Apartment Complex on Joy Boulevard east of Gratiot Avenue in Clinton Township at about 1 p.m. Tuesday. Police said the boy found a handgun in the grass and believe it fell out of a pocket of the Mt. Clemens man.

Dillard’s mother was nearby when the gun went off and rushed him to McLaren Macomb Hospital. Police said the shot struck the boy in the chest and that he died at the hospital.

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The FBI Macomb County Violent crimes Task force, which Clinton Township helps staff with an officer, located and arrested Johnson on the west side of Detroit at about 8 p.m. Tuesday night, Clinton Township police said.

Clinton Township Capt. Richard Maierle said the 29-year-old is well-known in the apartment complex. He said in interviews with residents, officers learned that the suspect was known to carry a handgun with him.

While he has a Mt. Clemens mailing address, Maierle said the suspect frequently stayed at Newport Arms Apartments with friends and at other residences in the immediate area. “People knew who he was right away,” he said.

On Thursday, Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith authorized a four count felony warrant against Johnson. “Cameron Dillard was taken from us at such a tender age,” Smith said in a news release. “Though we share in the heartbreak, nothing we do can bring this child back to us. But we can undertake to hold accountable those responsible for this grievous loss of life. Perhaps this will bring some measure of justice for those who loved Cameron so dearly, and prevent incidents like this from taking place in the future.”

Photo courtesy of the Clinton Township Police Department