No charges in shooting of WM 3-year old

No charges in shooting of WM 3-year old

Gun left on table gets into wrong hands, but no foul play, say police

news@theeveningtimes.com

There will apparently be no charges filed after a 3year-old boy accidentally shot himself in the head at Arrington Estates in West Memphis last week.

Around 10 p.m. last Tuesday night, the boy was taken to Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in Memphis with what was determined to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The West Memphis Police Department does not expect any charges to be filed, but did say the gun was left out in the bedroom according to corroborating witness accounts. The child was originally listed in critical condition but has shown some signs of improvement.

“Especially for a child … a 3-year-old child,” said West Memphis Police Captain Joe Baker. “It would not be a hard thing for them to pull the trigger on that style of handgun.”

Baker said leaving the gun out was “obviously some really bad gun safety habits.” But while tragic, nothing about the incident, Baker explained, “would rise to the level of a criminal charge.”

The accidental shooting is just one of a rash of children accidentally shooting themselves in the Mid-South. Three similar incidents have occurred in the Memphis area in recent weeks, including two fatalities.

By the Evening Times News Staff