Horror as a three-year-old girl accidentally SHOOTS AND KILLS her 4-year-old sister after finding a loaded semi-automatic pistol in their Houston apartment while their parents were having friends over and left them alone.
- The accidental shooting occurred at the family’s home on Sunday at 8 p.m. local time.
- Girls left unsupervised in parents’ bedroom thought someone else was watching them
A three-year-old girl accidentally shot and killed her sister, 4, after finding a loaded semi-automatic pistol in her Houston apartment while her parents were having friends over and leaving them alone.
The accidental shooting occurred at the family’s home on Sunday, March 12 at 8:00 p.m. local time in Houston, Texas.
The two girls were left unsupervised in a room in the apartment because one parent thought the other was watching them, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.
There were also five adults, family members and friends, present at the apartment on Bammel North Houston Road, including the girls’ parents.
The 3-year-old girl is believed to have found a loaded semi-automatic pistol and fired once, injuring her 4-year-old sister, the sheriff said.
The accidental shooting occurred at the family’s home on Sunday, March 12 at 8:00 p.m. local time in Houston, Texas. The two girls were left unsupervised in a room in the apartment because one parent thought the other was watching them, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said (file image)
The adults rushed into the room after a single shot was fired to find the four-year-old unresponsive.
They secured the firearm and called 911 for emergency services. The toddler was pronounced dead at the scene.
Sheriff Gonzalez said, “It sounds like another tragic story of, again, a child gaining access to a firearm and injuring another person and this time there was a fatal shot.”
‘Our hearts are broken. Our officers are pretty shaken up,’ Gonzalez continued, noting that support staff would be on scene to help officers and family members.
“The community is affected when a child loses their life in this way,” he said, adding that the shooting was another preventable gun death.
‘We continue to send the message that this is very preventable.
‘You have to make sure you are a responsible gun owner by keeping your guns in a safe place. It has to be more than just telling little kids not to touch guns.
‘You know, we have to do a little more. We see too many tragic situations like this unfold.’
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office will decide whether any of the adults will face charges based on the police investigation, which is still in the preliminary phase, according to Gonzalez.
Advocacy group Everytown for Gun Safety analyzed data on shootings so far in 2023 and found that there have been at least 58 unintentional shootings by children in the US, resulting in 22 deaths and 37 injuries.
Last year, there were at least 353 unintentional shootings by children, resulting in 156 deaths and 212 injuries, the group said.
