Detroit, MI

Family of girl whose throat was slashed in Detroit park files $50M lawsuit

Published

3 weeks ago

October 23, 2025

Family of girl whose throat was slashed in Detroit park files M lawsuit

Saida Mashrah said her sleep is still filled with nightmares and she’s fearful when strangers walk past her house more than a year after police said a strange man slashed her throat while she played in a Detroit park.

“Sometimes (at school) I get scared and have to take a break with a teacher,” the soft-spoken 8-year-old said Wednesday.

Saida joined attorneys for her family during a press conference where they announced the recent filing of a $50 million civil suit against the suspect, 74-year-old Gary Lansky.

“We don’t know what types of assets … (Lansky) may have but I can assure you for every dollar that he has we want to take that away from him,” said Nabih Ayad, counsel for Saida’s family. “This person deserves to rot in hell and rot in jail.”

Authorities said that Saida and four other children were playing in Ryan Park, near the Dearborn border in east Detroit, on Oct. 8, 2024. Lansky, of Detroit, allegedly approached Saida, grabbed her head, tilted it back and slashed her throat. Saida kicked him and escaped.

While she has fully recovered from the physical injuries, Ayad said the young girl will likely always carry with her the trauma she endured that day.

“Forever she will be haunted by this, traumatized by this and is currently seeking therapy and probably will for the rest of her life,” he said.

Lansky has been charged with assault with intent to murder and assault with a dangerous weapon. Ayad said Lansky is currently in the process of being evaluated for competency to stand trial. Online records show he remains behind bars at the Wayne County Jail, held on a $2 million bond.

An attorney for Lansky did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Following the alleged attack last year, advocates called on state and federal authorities to prosecute the case as a hate crime. Ayad believes Lansky, who is White, specifically targeted Saida based on her race. She was the only Arab American girl in the park that day, he said; all other children were Black.

After Saida ran away from her attacker, Lansky then approached the girl’s grandmother, who was in the park with her, Ayad said. The older woman was wearing a hijab, making her a target for a hate-based attack, advocates said. Lansky allegedly fled the scene after Saida and other children began to scream.

“My daughter still smiles sometimes but it’s not the same smile. It’s the kind of smile that hides tears,” Saida’s mother, Amirah Sharan, said in a statement read by attorney William Savage during Wednesday’s press conference. “… As a mother, it’s the worst pain imaginable to see your child hurt and know there’s nothing you can do about it.”

mreinhart@detroitnews.com

@max_detroitnews

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Detroit, MI

Downtown Development Authority approves $75M for Renaissance Center

Published

4 hours ago

November 13, 2025

Press Room

Downtown Development Authority approves M for Renaissance Center

Downtown Development Authority approves $75M for Renaissance Center – CBS Detroit

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The Downtown Development Authority is investing $75 million in the redevelopment project for the Renaissance Center.

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Detroit, MI

Detroit Historical Museum hosting new exhibition in honor of Red Wings’ centennial

Published

22 hours ago

November 12, 2025

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Detroit Historical Museum hosting new exhibition in honor of Red Wings’ centennial

DETROIT (WXYZ) — The Detroit Historical Museum is hosting a new exhibition in honor of the Detroit Red Wings’ centennial season.

It’s called “Detroit Red Wings at 100: Becoming Hockeytown” and will be in three galleries at the Detroit Historical Museum.

Inside the City of Champions Gallery, the new Motor City Showcase and the Detroit Artists Showcase, fans will find rare artifacts from the Historical Society, the team’s archives and the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Some of the artifacts include:

Uniforms from Detroit Red Wings greats, including the Grind Line and Russian Five
Rarely-seen artifacts on loan from the Hockey Hall of Fame and Windsor Community Museum
Vintage audio and video clips of some of the greatest Red Wings moments in history
A spotlight on the players who have had their numbers retired

There are also lockers like the ones in Olympia Stadium, a chance to flash the original goal lights from Joe Louis Arena and hear the organ from Olympia.

“It’s an honor to see a century of Red Wings history brought to life at the Detroit Historical Museum,” Ilitch Sports + Entertainment Senior Vice President of Brand Marketing Asia Gholston said in a statement “Every decade has its own defining moments, and this exhibit gives our fans a special opportunity to celebrate the passion, pride, and legacy that have defined 100 years of Red Wings hockey.”

The exhibition will be on display all season long, and fans can also shop vintage Red Wings merchandise at the museum store.

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Detroit, MI

Detroit Lions players pack food to help those in need have a Thanksgiving meal

Published

2 days ago

November 11, 2025

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Detroit Lions players pack food to help those in need have a Thanksgiving meal

Coming off their recent Sunday win, the Detroit Lions players and staff joined others in the community to put in a win for Thanksgiving meals for those in need.

On Tuesday, Nov. 11, players and staff joined volunteers from Meijer and the Lineage Foundation for Good in packing Thanksgiving meal kits at Gleaners Community Bank in Taylor.

Volunteers packed canned and dry goods into 3,000 Thanksgiving meal kits.

Those meal kits are part of the Lions’ plans for 10,000 kits – double from last year. Part of what made the meal kits possible is donations from Detroit Lions partners.

For years, the Lions have done Thanksgiving meal initiatives to help those in need. This is the second annual partnership with Grand Rapids-based grocer, Meijer, and the third with Gleaners. As they did last year, Meijer, the exclusive grocery partner for the Lions, is donating all proceeds from this year’s “Raise the Roar” Lions flag sales to the Detroit Lions Foundation, with proceeds tackling food insecurity.

The meal kit packing initiative began a month ago and included Detroit Lions partners AAA – The Auto Club Group (ACG), Delta Airlines, Jiffy Mix, Lineage Foundation for Good and Modern Woodmen of America.

Angela Halverson, director of community giving for Gleaners Community Food Bank, said packing these meal kits on Tuesday represents a “community coming together to help neighbors,” who might be food insecure this time of year.

“The timing is important because Thanksgiving is in a couple of short weeks from now, and we want to make sure that many in southeastern Michigan are going to sit down to a warm meal that they can count on for that Thanksgiving dinner.”

Halverson said many metro Detroiters will choose between heating their house and purchasing food.

“The Lions are coming together in a partnership with Gleaners to help take one of those worries, ideally off the table,” Halverson told the Free Press.

The 10,000 Thanksgiving meal kits equate to providing more than 330,000 meals. This year the distribution includes metro Detroit food banks as well as those Grand Rapids, Lansing, Saginaw and Traverse City.

Each meal kit includes canned and dry goods. There are green beans, corn, fruit, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mac and cheese, cranberry sauce and Jiffy Mix.

Once the kits make it to distribution sites, there’s an addition of a 3-pound bag of fresh apples from North Bay Produce and a whole turkey.

In the boxes are everything you would want for Thanksgiving from potatoes to produce.

“It’s nutritious and warm comforting food and exactly what we need this time of year,” said Halverson.

For Gleaners Community Food Bank information visit gcfb.org.

Contact Detroit Free Press food and restaurant writer Susan Selasky and send food and restaurant news and tips to: sselasky@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Follow @SusanMariecooks on Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter. Subscribe to the Eat Drink Freep newsletter for insider scoops on food and dining in metro Detroit.

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