By Ivan Pereira
The Long Island teen who shot an 11−year−old Springfield Gardens boy at his doorstep will be spending the next decade of his life incarcerated, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.
Michael Peterson, 19, of 11 Heathcote Road in Elmont, L.I., was sentenced to serve 10 years in prison last Thursday as punishment for opening fire on Tyshaun Falconer on Dec. 30, according to the DA. The boy answered his front door around 8:30 p.m. and was shot in the chest after Peterson asked him where his older brother Tony was.
“The shooting was totally senseless — and could well have resulted in the child’s death. The prison sentence imposed is more than warranted,” Brown said in a statement.
After being shot, Tyshaun ran to his parents and collapsed in their arms before he was rushed to Long Island Jewish Medical Center, according to the DA. He spent the rest of the week in the hospital recuperating from his injuries.
Peterson was arrested a week later and on Oct. 22 pleaded guilty to a second−degree attempted murder charge, the DA said. The teen told Queens Supreme Court Justice Joseph Grasso that he had an argument with Tony Falconer Jr., the boy’s older brother, and came to the Springfield Garden house looking for him.
“The defendant … shot the youngster simply because he was the one who answered the door,” Brown said.
Reach reporter Ivan Pereira by e−mail at ipereira@timesledger.com or by phone at 718−229−0300, Ext. 146.
