Detroit 6-year-old shoots his infant brother in the face with semi-automatic: police
A 1-year-old boy in Detroit is miraculously recovering in the hospital after his 6-year-old brother shot him twice while he was in a bouncy chair, reported Local 4 News.
"The shooting occurred Wednesday (June 7) at 7:42 p.m. on Tennessee Street in the Jefferson Chalmers area," reported Brandon Carr. "Detroit police Assistant Chief Charles Fitzgerald gave an update on the situation. 'A 1-year-old baby was in his bouncy when another family member, a child, gets a hold of a gun and shot his sibling, not once but twice,' said Fitzgerald. 'The 1-year-old was shot through his cheek and through his left shoulder. We are very fortunate that that child is still with us.'"
"Officials say the baby’s mother was down the street visiting a friend while the father was outside in the backyard with an uncle and other children while working on a fence," said the report. "Fitzgerald said the gun was a fully loaded semi-automatic."
According to Fitzgerald, the gun in question was not properly secured. “Once again, preventable,” he said. “We’re here far too often talking about securing your weapons as there are gun locks, gun safes, or even the highest shelf you could find in your house. Put the gun up as high as you can.”
No one has been arrested as of now. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, Michigan has a safe storage gun law, but not an explicit child access to firearms prevention law.
Children getting access to guns has all too often led to tragedy. Last June, an 8-year-old in Escambia County, Florida fatally shot his sister while playing with a gun that his father owned illegally. A few months later, a 4-year-old in Corpus Christi, Texas took a loaded handgun to school.