DETROIT (WWJ) — A Detroit man is now charged with second-degree murder for the death of an elderly tourist who was visiting the city from Germany.
Earlier this month the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced 30-year-old Lawrence Deonte Gilchrist had been charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm and aggravated assault after he walked up to and, for no apparent reason, punched 81-year-old Dieter Kirsch.
On Wednesday the prosecutor’s office announced those charges had been amended to second-degree murder, as Kirsch died of his injuries last Tuesday, 10 days after the incident.
Around 10:15 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7 Detroit police officers were called to a building on Woodward Avenue, just north of Campus Martius Park.
Gilchrist allegedly walked up to Kirsch and, “without provocation,” hit him, causing him to fall and hit his head. Prosecutors say when police showed up the German man was on the ground suffering from a severe head injury.
EMS rushed him to the hospital, where he remained until his death last week.