A Texas baby died from injuries sustained in an accidental shooting. Shockingly, police say the shooter was a toddler. The accident occurred in a parking lot in San Antonio on October 21. Sadly, the toddler reportedly got ahold of a loaded gun inside the vehicle and accidentally shot and killed the baby. Apparently, another toddler was also in the car at the time of the shooting but was not injured.
San Antonio Police have released few details about the shooting, aside from confirming a 3-year-old, 2-year-old, and a 10- or 11-month-old baby were in the car with an adult female at the time of the shooting. It’s a sobering lesson about gun safety and young children.
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One of the older children accidentally pulled the trigger.
San Antonio Police Chief William McManus addressed the media during a news briefing on Monday afternoon. Initially, he gave limited information, only confirming the shooting was accidental. He said one of the older children — not specifying which — retrieved a weapon from the back of the vehicle and “accidentally pulled the trigger,” killing the baby.
The shooting occurred in a hospital parking lot.
According to McManus, the toddler shot the gun in the parking lot of the Audie L. Murphy VA Medical Center on Merton Minter in San Antonio. Hospital staff and emergency personnel quickly responded to the scene and immediately tried to save the baby. Unfortunately, the infant died at the scene.
Police did not release any identifying information.
The police chief gave very few details about the shooting. He did not name the victim, suspected shooter, or adult reportedly inside the car. He also declined to provide the gender of the children inside the vehicle. McManus said, “What we have here today is a terrible, terrible tragedy.”
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The shooting brought gun safety to light.
Carmelo Vega, a range manager for Lone Star Handgun, told WOAI that this shooting showed a lack of gun safety protocol.
“You have to take every measure required to ensure that no one, including young kids, adults, or anyone that is not supposed to have access to that firearm does not in fact get access to the firearm,” he said.
Police did not name the gun owner or detail how the child got access to the weapon.
Even though the accident happened out of the home, Vega said that even in a car, there are ways to secure guns to keep everyone safe. A proper case and a trigger lock help, Vega said, according to WOAI. “Having it properly locked in a hard case, obviously away from children,” he said.
For now, there is no word on whether police will seek charges in the accidental shooting.
