An 11-year-old boy died after being shot while playing a doorbell ditch prank in Houston, according to police. This is the latest tragic example of a TikTok trend that authorities have warned parents about in a case that could result in a murder charge.
The boy and his friends were playing “ding dong ditch” at a house down the street shortly before 11 p.m. Houston police said that on Saturday, someone inside the house came out and shot the boy.
According to police, the boy was shot while running from a house on Racine Street after ringing the doorbell.
According to police, the boy was taken to hospital and pronounced dead on Sunday.
Authorities used a bullhorn outside the home on Saturday night to summon the person inside to come out with their hands raised, according to CNN affiliate KTRK. Police detained one person for questioning.
Officers returned a person to their home in handcuffs shortly before 6 a.m. Sunday, according to KTRK. According to KTRK, the person was detained again on Sunday night but not formally charged.
The Houston Police Department confirmed to CNN on Monday that the investigation is ongoing.
Investigators are reviewing surveillance video and consulting with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office about potential charges, according to KHOU.
“It’ll more than likely be a murder charge,” Sgt. Michael Cass, a homicide detective with the Houston Police Department, told KHOU, adding that the boy’s death does not appear to be self-defense because the shooting “wasn’t close to the house.”
George Skinner, a neighborhood resident, told CNN affiliate KPRC that the tragedy struck close to home because he has a 10-year-old grandchild and other young family members who frequently play in the area.
The 70-year-old said he has lived in the neighborhood for most of his life and has never witnessed anything like this before.
“Me and couple of my neighbors, we just were real sad that something like that actually happened to a child, you know?” According to him. “Ten years old, you got a long ways to go.”
“Ding dong ditching” is an age-old prank that has recently gained popularity as a social media challenge. TikTok videos frequently feature variations in which pranksters pound or kick people’s front doors.
According to police, at the end of July, a man opened fire on a fleeing car after someone knocked on his door in a Dallas suburb. He was arrested on charges of aggravated assault.
In May, an 18-year-old high school senior in Virginia was shot and killed while filming a “ding dong ditch” for TikTok, according to The New York Times. The man accused of shooting the teenager has been charged with second-degree murder.
In 2020, three 16-year-olds were killed when a man rammed his car into theirs in retaliation for playing a “ding dong ditch” prank on him. The man was found guilty of three counts of murder and sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2023.
Authorities across the country have expressed concern about the door knock challenge, warning of both the potential danger and the legal consequences for those who participate.
“Do you think it’s funny to bang on doors and run? “Think again,” the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office in Indiana wrote on Facebook in August. “What might seem like a prank can lead to serious legal trouble, property damage, or worse – someone getting hurt.”
“That’s a good way to end up dead, especially in Florida,” Sheriff Mike Chitwood of the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office told CNN affiliate WESH in July, after arresting a 13-year-old girl and a 15-year-old boy for kicking in a door one night.
A doorbell camera caught the teens creeping up to a family’s home and kicking the door before fleeing, according to WESH. It took authorities two hours to find them.
“You’re endangering your future with this TikTok challenge,” Chitwood said to me. “You’re going to be charged with a felony.” The two teenagers were charged with burglary, according to WESH.
