9-year-old boy fatally shot by his stepdad, Wisconsin cops say. ‘A bright funny boy’

A stepfather faces homicide charges following the fatal shooting of his 9-year-old stepson, according to Wisconsin police and news reports.

The Town of Geneva Police Department said the boy was discovered shot in a home shortly before 2:30 a.m. Monday, Jan. 20. He was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

The boy was identified as Michael Meagher, a second-grade student at Brook Park Elementary School in La Grange Park, a suburb of Chicago, WGN reported.

Police did not provide additional information about the shooting but said 52-year-old Steven Merkel Jr. was charged with first-degree reckless homicide.

Merkel is the stepfather of Michael, WITI and WISN reported.

“It was a hard scene,” Town of Geneva Police Chief Anthony Miceli told WISN. “It’s a hard scene for any officer, no matter how many times you’ve seen it, or even if you’ve never been there before, it’s probably the hardest scene for a police officer to experience in his lifetime.”

Michael, who had two sisters, was described in a GoFundMe as “a bright funny boy.” Miceli told WITI the boy was in Wisconsin for the weekend.

WDJT reported Merkel was jailed in Walworth County on a $250,000 cash bond.

The town of Geneva is about a 45-mile drive southwest from Milwaukee.

This story was originally published January 23, 2025 at 8:05 AM with the headline "9-year-old boy fatally shot by his stepdad, Wisconsin cops say. ‘A bright funny boy’."