By Funmi News Staff
PORT HURON, Mich. —A Michigan man accused of fatally shooting his teenage son and wounding his two younger children on the day he was scheduled to be sentenced for a sex-crime conviction has been ordered to stand trial on murder and assault charges.
Jeffrey Smerer, 44, of Port Huron, faces charges of open murder, two counts of assault with intent to murder, two counts of first-degree child abuse, and multiple firearm offenses, according to prosecutors.
He remains held without bond at the St. Clair County Jail.Police said officers responded to the family’s apartment shortly after 6 a.m. on Sept. 11 following reports of gunfire. Inside, they found three children suffering from gunshot wounds.
The oldest, 17-year-old Kayleb Smerer, was pronounced dead at the scene. His siblings, 13-year-old Bentley and 12-year-old Kinzely, were hospitalized in serious condition at a Detroit-area facility, according to Port Huron police.
Investigators said Smerer’s wife and 20-year-old son intervened and restrained him before additional harm could occur. Prosecutors allege Smerer confessed to the shooting and told detectives he had planned the attack for about a week.
Court documents show Smerer was scheduled that morning to be sentenced for indecent exposure, after pleading guilty to exposing himself to a child attending his family’s daycare between 2020 and 2023.
St. Clair County Prosecutor Michael Wendling confirmed that a district judge found enough evidence during a preliminary hearing to send the case to circuit court for trial. A date has not yet been set.
The Port Huron Police Department has declined additional comment beyond its initial statement identifying the victims and summarizing the investigation.
Related Coverage
CBS News Detroit: Father accused of shooting 3 children appears in court
https://www.cbsnews.com/detroit/news/port-huron-man-in-court-for-shooting-of-three-children
Port Huron Times Herald: Smerer bound over after preliminary exam
People Magazine: Michigan Dad Allegedly Shot 3 Kids Day of Sentencing
Police vehicles outside the Port Huron apartment where the Sept. 11 shooting occurred.*(Photo: Courtesy of Port Huron Police Department / FOX 2 Detroit)*—### 📄 Meta Description> A Port Huron father, Jeffrey Smerer, faces trial after allegedly shooting his three children — killing one — on the morning he was to be sentenced for indecent exposure.
