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GROSSE POINTE WOODS — As a family lays its youngest member to rest, the fate of another hangs in the balance.
Dennis “Denny” John Doheny, of Grosse Pointe Woods, died on his 19th birthday Oct. 6 after his brother Edmond “Teddy” Doheny, 29, allegedly shot him in the head at a home in the Woods. A funeral service for Dennis Doheny, the youngest in a family of four brothers, was held Oct. 21 at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church in St. Clair Shores. A person who posted on the Bagnasco & Calcaterra Funeral Home website remembered the teen as “kindhearted and polite” and a “beautiful soul.”
Edmond Doheny, who has been charged with open murder, was slated at press time to appear in Grosse Pointe Woods Municipal Court for a preliminary exam Oct. 25. He could spend the rest of his life behind bars if convicted.
From the Wayne County Jail, Edmund Doheny wiped tears from his face with his sleeve as he took part in a probable cause hearing in the case via Zoom Oct. 18 in Woods Municipal Court.
Doheny’s defense attorney, Robert Ihrie, said that this was “a tragic accident,” not an intentional killing.
“He’s the one who called the police,” Ihrie said of Edmond Doheny. “He’s the one who carried his brother downstairs. He’s the one, according to the police report, that was holding his brother and trying to stop the bleeding that was occurring.”
Ihrie added that Doheny has the support of his family — his mother and one of his brothers was in the courtroom Oct. 18, and even more family and friends were present for his arraignment.
“There’s no evidence that my client ever had a bad relationship with his brother … that might be a motive for an intentional act,” Ihrie continued, noting that the two brothers lived together.
Ihrie asked the court to reduce his client’s $1 million cash or surety bond to a $50,000 personal recognizance bond.
“We do not believe in any way he is a flight risk,” said Ihrie, noting that his client is a Woods resident, has many family members in the area and doesn’t have a passport. “There’s never been a violent act committed by him.”
Ihrie said Doheny has been working full-time as a plumber for the past year.
Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor James Kehoe said he disputed many of the things Ihrie said.
“There are several statements made (to police) by Mr. Doheny to the effect of, that he was just showing his brother the gun when this happened,” Kehoe said. “I think the facts of this case are going show, judge … that that could not possibly be true, based on what we know.”
Kehoe said Edmond Doheny had a blood alcohol level of 0.12% about four to five hours after the shooting.
“That’s astronomically high for a five-hour waiting period,” Kehoe said.
That means Doheny’s blood alcohol level at the time of the shooting would have been considerably higher — roughly 0.18% to 0.195%. A person is considered too intoxicated to drive with a blood alcohol level of 0.08%.
According to a University of Michigan health service website, alcohol leaves the body at a rate of about .015% per hour, regardless of a person’s size or biological sex.
“There’s certainly an alcohol abuse problem,” Kehoe argued.
Kehoe asked that Doheny be restricted to home confinement.
Woods Municipal court Judge Theodore Metry agreed to reduce Edmond Doheny’s bond from $1 million cash or surety to $300,000 cash or surety or 10%, albeit with several conditions. Those conditions include not having access to any weapons; wearing a Wayne County GPS tether; adhering to a 10 p.m. curfew; not using alcohol, drugs or marijuana; and being tested for those substances twice per week.
“The court does take this matter extremely seriously, as the case is extremely serious,” Metry said. “The court also takes into account Mr. Doheny’s safety.”
The Oct. 26 issue of the Grosse Pointe Times went to press prior to the preliminary exam.
A GoFundMe page — under the name Dennis John Doheny II — had been set up to pay for funeral expenses and loss of work for the family. To donate or for more information, visit gofundme.com.
