MARYSVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) — A man faces multiple charges after a bullet went through a hotel room wall, hitting a 4-year-old child.
At about 9 p.m. on April 7, emergency dispatchers received a report of a person shot in the leg at the Super 8 Motel at 16510 Square Drive in Marysville, according to Marysville police. The caller told dispatchers the victim was a 4-year-old who was struck by a bullet through the hotel room wall, and they believed someone in the adjacent hotel room fired the gun.
Police searched the area and identified two suspects, including 45-year-old Joseph Seaunier. Seaunier was arrested at the hotel and charged with having weapons under disability.
On Monday, Seaunier was additionally charged with obstructing official business, a misdemeanor. Marysville police said charges against the second suspect are forthcoming.
When police arrived at the room next to where the child was shot, they found Seaunier and the second suspect, according to court documents. While waiting outside the room for investigators to search, police said Seaunier became agitated, saying he wanted to “fight officers.”
After ignoring a sergeant’s requests to “calm down,” police said Seaunier got into a fighting stance and “brought his fist in a boxing manner.” The sergeant then took Seaunier to the ground and handcuffed him. After being restrained, police said Seaunier became aggressive and was “verbally resistant to officers holding him.”
Upon arrest and transfer to the Tri-County Regional Jail, court documents show that Seaunier told investigators that he and the second suspect had been staying at the hotel for about two weeks and were planning to move that evening. Police said Seaunier told investigators his companion owned a firearm because they were previously a corrections officer, and that he knew the firearm was in the room.
Seaunier has multiple felony convictions, including for domestic violence, according to court records. He appeared in court Monday and was released on his own recognizance, with his preliminary hearing scheduled for April 17 at 8:30 a.m. in Marysville Municipal Court.
