Authorities are investigating the killing of a Traverse City employee whose body was found Sunday morning, and they believe the homicide is connected to an incident the night before, in which two teens fled and shot at police on Saturday night.
Traverse City police said in a statement they responded to a report of a dead body at 7:48 a.m. Sunday, in the 300 block of East State Street. That's the location of a public parking structure run by the city.
There, they found 32-year-old Lawrence Boyd IV dead from an apparent gunshot wound. Boyd was an employee of the city’s Parking Services department, and was working on Saturday night, Traverse City police Chief Matt Richmond said.
"Our city employees are family, and we lost a member of our family," Interim City Manager Benjamin Marentette told IPR on Sunday night. "My heart is just breaking for Mr. Boyd's family, for the employees that worked with him and for anyone touched by his life."
He said city officials have reached out to Boyd's family and support services are being made available to city employees, too.
"I'll also say — and it often does not get said — but I'm definitely thinking about the suspects' families, also," Marentette said.
Police have two male suspects in custody, ages 17 and 18, who were arrested after a foot chase on Saturday night, when police attempted to confront them about a report of thefts from vehicles.
Traverse City police statement from Sunday evening:
A massive Saturday night response
In the Saturday night incident, Traverse City police received a report of larceny from a vehicle at about 10 p.m., in the 1200 block of East Eighth Street. Officers approached two people who matched the suspect descriptions in a parking lot a short distance away — the 100 block of Munson Avenue.
The two suspects fled on foot and, police said, during the chase one of them pulled a gun and fired at officers.
Neither the officers nor the suspects were injured in that shooting, but police said a round did hit the pantleg of one officer.
The Saturday night incident drew an enormous police response along Munson Avenue on Saturday night, with police surrounding a motel, officers searching the ground with flashlights and authorities telling nearby residents to shelter in place and to not answer the door for anyone they don’t know.
Northwestern Michigan College was also briefly placed on lockdown.
At the time, Boyd's death was not yet known to authorities. Police said evidence found on Sunday morning leads them to believe the two incidents are linked.
Marentette, the city manager, said events like this — as well as the summer's stabbing at Walmart — test the resolve of the community, which he still believes to be a safe place to live.
"Terrible things like this do happen in places that feel very safe, like Traverse City, and it rattles us but it does not defeat us," Marentette said. "This is a strong community that looks out for each other. I'm grateful to be able to live here."
We will update this story as more information becomes available.
