Two young cousins, Paris (12) and Kuaron (14) Harvey, are dead after a tragic accident while livestreaming to Instagram. The cousins were making a video from a bathroom in St. Louis on March 18th when the incident occurred. The incident was originally reported in the media as a murder-suicide. Police affirm that they are treating the case as a tragic firearms accident.
Investigation showed that while filming themselves with a handgun, Kuaron was shot in the head by Paris accidentally. Paris then tried to pick up the gun and the gun went off, striking Paris in the head.
The family stressed that the pair of cousins were very close and were not arguing. According to the family, the kids were trying to “be hip” while making the video.
Family members believe that the handgun belonged to Kuaron, who at 14 was not legally able to possess a handgun. The family also stated that the cousins should never have been “playing” with firearms while making a video.
As a reminder, basic firearm safety rules dictate that you never point a gun at anything you don’t intend to shoot, that you keep all firearms unloaded until ready to use, and that you store all firearms in a manner that prevents access by unauthorized parties. Loaded firearms should never be pointed at another person unless in actual self-defense.
Tragedies like this can be prevented by following existing firearm safety rules, and of course by keeping firearms in locations that are inaccessible to children.
