Summer, although a time for fun, relaxation, and exploration, comes with its own set of dangers, particularly around the 4th of July. Most of us receive the additional warnings about maintaining a safe distance from fireworks and other explosives. We know how quickly a child can overheat in a hot car. And all year long, parents hear about how imperative it is to keep their firearms away from little ones.
Sadly, when Georgia parents Sam Odums and Laileighauna Parks took their chances with all three of these potential hazards, they lost their 2-year-old son.
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Nakyzi Odums was left alone in the car in a Walmart parking lot.
The toddler died on July 6 after accidentally shooting himself in the face in a Walmart parking lot. He was left alone in the car with a loaded weapon on July 3 while his parents were at a nearby stand shopping for fireworks, WALB reported.
According to The Independent, witnesses told police that when the boy’s parents heard the gunshot, they ran to the back of the car where they found Nakyzi. The child was rushed to the hospital in Douglas, Georgia, and then was transferred to a trauma center in Jacksonville, Florida. He died three days later, according to a Facebook post from the Douglas Georgia Police Department.
Police are trying to determine how the toddler got the firearm in the first place.
The investigation into Nakyzi’s death is ongoing. Douglas Police Chief Brannen Pruette said authorities are trying to determine how the child got a gun. Witnesses claim Nakyzi was sitting in the front seat of the vehicle. The gun may have been in the side pocket of the car door.
Referencing that theory, Pruette said, “You’re allowed to have a gun in the car, but when there’s a child involved, you need to make sure that the gun is secure so that the child doesn’t have access to it.”
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At this time, Nakyzi's parents have not been charged.
Right now, it is unclear whether Nakyzi’s parents, Sam Odums and Laileighauna Parks, will face charges in their son’s death. Their names have not been listed on recent arrest reports, according to The Independent.
As authorities work to determine exactly what happened, they sent a message to the grieving family. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time,” police noted via Facebook.
The family has launched a GoFundMe account for burial costs and to help the family 'grieve properly.'
Nakyzi’s grandmother, Candi Brinson, remembered the boy as someone who “smiled brightly, laughed wholeheartedly [and] loved unconditionally.” She said the toddler was the “light and love” for his parents.
Brinson created a GoFundMe account on behalf of the family to help pay for burial costs and to allow Odums and Parks to “grieve properly.” Thus far, the family has raised more than $2,300 of a $5,000 goal.
