BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA — In a tragic case of irresponsible gun ownership, a man left his handgun in his vehicle unsecured, allowing for a three-year-old to gain access to it and accidentally shoot a four-year-old, WBRC reports.
Apparently, the man had the gun holstered inside his truck while he was inside a house, but it was not locked away and neither was the car itself.
A toddler was able to acces it and accidentally shoot a four-year-old with whom the child was playing.
The four-year-old boy was reportedly taken to a hospital, and fortunately it appears that the young child is in stable condition.
WBRC reports that it doe not appear that any charges will be filed, surprisingly enough. That did not stop one Birmingham police detective from expressing his frustration at the man who behaved so recklessly.
“When you do purchase a handgun or any kind of weapon it becomes your responsibility,” said Detective Erin Valentine Fitzgerald with the Birmingham Police Department. That’s your gun, especially when you purchase it properly and you get a permit for it. That’s (your) gun. Children are innocent. A lot of times the see guns on TV and they think of them as a toy. They don’t understand that shooting that gun can sometimes take a life and that person may not come back.”
This is why it is so important to secure your firearms. Incidents with minors do happen, and it’s our job to prevent them from happening with us.
It endangers children, and makes us all look bad. It’s unacceptable.
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