HOUSTON: On Sunday, a 3-year-old girl found a loaded gun in her family’s Texas home and accidentally shot her 4-year-old sister, police said.
At about 8 o’clock in the evening, according to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, the girls were in the bedroom of the apartment they shared with their parents on Bammel North Houston Road in Houston.
According to Gonzalez, there were five adults in the apartment, but they were all elsewhere when the girls were left alone.
The semiautomatic pistol, loaded with ammunition, was found in the hands of the 3-year-old. A single gunshot was heard by family members. When they entered the room, they found the 4-year-old child unresponsive, as Gonzalez explained.
Gonzalez told reporters outside the house that police responded to a 911 call from the girl’s family and pronounced the girl dead at the scene.
The incident “seems like another tragic story of a child gaining access to a firearm and hurting someone else,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez stated that the preliminary police investigation would be used by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to determine whether or not any of the adults would be charged.
Our hearts have been shattered. It’s safe to say that our deputies were shaken up,” Gonzalez said, adding that counselors would be on hand to help the officers and their loved ones.
Gonzalez remarked that “the community is impacted when a child loses their life in this way,” and that this was yet another preventable shooting death.
We keep spreading the word that this is entirely avoidable, Gonzalez said. To be a responsible gun owner, you must keep your firearms locked up. There needs to be more than just warning kids away from the weapons. To be honest, there is still more work for us to do. It’s all too common for us to witness tragic events like this.
