DETROIT (WXYZ) — A Detroit man is recovering after being shot in his home in what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. The shooting has left him fearing for his safety and calling for an end to gun violence in the city.
Watch Randy Wimbley's video report:
Danny Dismukes, a 57-year-old contractor, was struck in the chest when someone fired multiple shots into his home on Winthrop near Outer Drive and Greenfield on July 24 around 11:30 p.m.
"I have bullet holes in my front walls, down below the window, up over the window, and the bullet hole that went through my chest when I was sitting on the couch," Dismukes said.
The bullet went through his lung and lodged in his back, sending him to the hospital for several days.
"I sat on my couch, and I heard bullets ringing off and went into a daze. I felt my body blow back on the couch," Dismukes said.
Web extra: 'I thought I was dead.' Man describes his injuries after shooting
What makes this shooting particularly troubling is that Dismukes believes he was not the intended target. According to police, a group of women had tried to break into his house earlier, saying "someone was going to pay" for the death of a female family member.
"I heard the girls and they guys outside hollerin, 'yeah they in there, they got her killed, we getting him, I don't care who in that house, I'm getting them,'" Dismukes said.
He now has a message for the people who shot him.
"I just wish somebody would've knocked on the door or let me get to the door before ya'll start shooting, let me tell ya'll that you got the wrong house. I don't wish for you to go nowhere else to kill nobody or hurt somebody, but I just want ya'll to know ya'll at the wrong house, and all this you just almost took my life, and I don't even know you people or what happened to your sister," Dismukes said.
The shooting has left Dismukes feeling unsafe in his own home.
"I'm not safe. I don't feel safe in this house. I'm gone. I'm leaving today. I gots to go," he said.
The incident may also cost him his livelihood as he recovers from his injuries.
"I want to see the city change. We gotta stop this gun violence. It's too many people dying," Dismukes said.
Detroit Police provided a statement saying they responded to a ShotSpotter alert just before 11:00 p.m. on Thursday, July 24, 2025, in the 18000 block of Winthrop Street. They confirmed a 57-year-old male was struck but not fatally injured. Police are working to identify the individuals involved in the earlier altercation and determine if it's related to the shooting.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Detroit Police or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAK-UP.
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