GOP official killed by neighbor after dispute over daughter playing with mulch: report

A Republican official in Michigan's Canton Township reportedly died from a gunshot wound after being confronted about his daughter touching a neighbor's mulch.

The Detroit News reported that 35-year-old Nathan Morris was identified by a press release from the Michigan GOP.

"We are devastated to share the tragic news about Nathan Morris, who was senselessly taken from us while protecting his family in Canton," the party said in a statement on Saturday.

Morris was serving as the secretary of the 6th Congressional District Republican Committee.

"On Saturday, while taking a stroll with his family in his neighborhood, his daughter touched the mulch of one of the neighbors," the Michigan GOP wrote in a post on X. "The neighbor took a gun out and started threatening the family. Nathan sent his family home and said that he would try and diffuse [sic] the situation, but instead was shot and killed."

The party said a GiveSendGo fundraiser was collecting donations for the Morris family.

Neighbors told The Detroit News that the shooter was known for being argumentative. One person said the suspect may have had a mental illness.

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Morris, a former engineer at Ford Motors, became active in Republican politics after Ford mandated COVID-19 vaccines.

Canton Police Chief Chad Baugh asked for witnesses of the "senseless act of violence" to come forward.

"The Canton Police Department sends our deepest condolences to the victim's family, and to the neighbors who may have witnessed this tragic event," Baugh said.