17-year-old Sivan Wilson is dead — and now a Michigan man is facing a manslaughter charge, sparking a heated debate over the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law.
According to officials, Sivan, 17, was with a group of mostly teenagers who broke into a garage in White Lake just after 1 a.m. on July 8. The homeowner, 24-year-old Dayton Knapton, had reportedly dealt with multiple break-ins before, and local police had simply encouraged him to “get a better home alert system.”
On the night of the incident, Knapton got an alert from that system, grabbed his 9mm, ran outside, and fired two shots through a windowless door — striking Sivan inside the garage.
As the group ran away, prosecutors say Knapton fired five more shots, then went back inside, reloaded, and came out again.
“Sivan was running away and got shot,” said his father, Shawn Madden.
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald said Knapton crossed a line:
“This defendant fired outside his home at fleeing persons. His actions not only took a life but potentially endangered the surrounding community by firing his weapon into the night.”
Now the case is raising major questions about where self-defense ends — and where criminal responsibility begins.