Police arrested an 18-year-old at the scene as investigators worked to determine the circumstances surrounding the late-night shooting.
WHITEHALL, Ohio — A 17-year-old boy was critically injured in a shooting late Tuesday in Whitehall, and an 18-year-old was arrested at the scene on a felonious assault charge, according to police and local news reports.
Officers responded shortly after 10 p.m. Nov. 10 to the 100 block of Robinwood Avenue, near East Broad Street, after receiving a report of a shooting. Police found the teenager with a gunshot wound to the head. Medics took him to Mount Carmel East Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition.
Whitehall police Lt. Tanner Williams said Wednesday morning that the teenager remained in critical condition with life-threatening injuries. Authorities had not publicly released the injured boy’s name, and no later verified update on his condition was available.
Police arrested 18-year-old Michael O. Hairston II at the scene. He was taken to the Franklin County jail and charged with felonious assault. The charge is an allegation, and the available reports did not establish that Hairston had entered a plea or that the case had been resolved.
Police have said the shooting happened while Hairston and the injured teenager were with friends at a residence. Williams said investigators understood that the young men had been handling a firearm they believed was unloaded when it discharged. Investigators were continuing to examine the circumstances surrounding the shooting.
The Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation assisted Whitehall police with processing the scene, according to reports citing a police news release. Authorities had not announced additional arrests or charges connected with the shooting.
The shooting drew a large police response to the Robinwood Avenue area. A neighbor interviewed by WSYX described seeing someone taken from the scene on a stretcher and said the response was unsettling.
Williams also used the incident to stress basic firearm-handling precautions, including treating firearms as loaded and storing them securely. His comments came as investigators worked to establish the sequence of events before the gun discharged.
Hairston had been expected to make a court appearance Thursday. No verified outcome from that appearance was available in the reporting reviewed for this story, and police had not announced a new public update on the teenager’s condition.
Author note: Last updated November 12, 2026.