VAN BUREN COUNTY, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – Following a press conference held Monday about a recent shooting in South Haven, family members of the victims and a county judge have released separate statements on the subject.
The shooting took place Friday afternoon at South Haven’s South Pier, during which 19-year-old gunman Aiden Ingalls of Bangor shot two victims before turning the weapon on himself.
One person died while another was critically injured. The victims were confirmed to be a couple.
The shooting was thought to be a random occurrence, as there was no relationship between Ingalls and the victims.
Previously, Ingalls had been at a juvenile detention center until November 2019 related to a 2018 threat against Paw Paw High School. At that time, he had planned a mass shooting, along with other acts of violence.
He was released from probation on July 20, 2021, just weeks before the shooting.
At a press conference Monday, Van Buren County Prosecutor Susan Zuiderveen and other law enforcement officials said efforts to try Ingalls as an adult in the school threat were unsuccessful.
“I felt like we did everything we could with law enforcement, and as a prosecuting attorney’s office, to make everyone aware of this threat,” Zuiderveen said.
They said it was the decision of Judge Jeffrey Dufon to try Ingalls as a juvenile.
Paw Paw Police Chief Eric Marshall added that had Ingalls been tried as an adult, it was his understanding that he would have faced at least 57 months in prison.
“The reality is, this was one of those cases that could have been preventable, and it wasn’t,” Chief Marshall said. “Now it’s up for the people of this county to decide who made the wrong decision.”
Ingalls was said to be suffering from various mental issues, and Van Buren County Sheriff Daniel Abbott said he hopes this case will help prevent similar incidents of this nature.
“It’s a sad situation, we can only hope that this case goes nationwide, and the fact that everything comes to the forefront, law enforcement in the future, families and community in the future, don’t have to deal with something like this,” Sheriff Abbott said. “We can only hope and pray that this case prevents tragedies in the future.”
Statement from family members of victims –
On Tuesday, the victims were identified by MLive as 73-year-old Chuck Skuza and his wife, Barb Skuza, age 72.
Chuck was pronounced dead at the scene, while Barb was airlifted to Bronson Hospital in Kalamazoo, where she remains in critical condition.
The statement, provided to MLive by members of the Skuza family, reads in part as follows:
“We are devastated beyond belief over the loss of our beloved father and we continue to pray for the recovery of our mother who we hold very dear. We stand in solidarity with the community. We will not be defeated by senseless violence.”
They also thanked the medical staff that are treating Barb at this time.
Statement from Judge Kathleen Brickley:
Although Van Buren County Judge Kathleen Brickley didn’t play a role in the trial for Ingalls in 2018, she wrote a statement this week regarding Judge Jeffrey Dufon’s decision, which was also provided to MLive.
That statement can be viewed below:
“Our justice system is a constant balancing act – balancing our rights and liberties as individuals with the safety and security of the public. We have our state and federal constitutions, statutes, court rules, and processes designed to find that balance and to protect both interests.
Those processes always work better when the different players in the justice system work together. In this case, after much deliberation, there was agreement by the elected prosecutor at the time that the chosen path forward was the right one, and there was no appeal of the court’s decision.
Today, we all mourn a tragedy, offer our condolences to the affected families, and should come together as a community to make sure that we all support and help those in need.”
Comments