HOUSTON- A child is in the hospital after a shooting at an elementary school this morning.
A fifth grader at Cynthia Youens Elementary School was taken to the hospital with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound to the stomach.
School officials say that the student brought the gun from home. They say when he walked in this morning, he had the gun tucked into his pants.
Around 10:30 a.m., the student pulled the .380 automatic pistol out to show to another student, and when he was putting it back it accidentally discharged, hitting him in the groin.
"I'm very concerned that he would be able to get a gun, very. Yeah, that's very scary for him to bring a gun to school, and interact with my child, especially," said one concerned parent.
Parents are suggesting that metal detectors be put in the school
He was able to tell officers that he took the gun from his garage and brought it to school this morning.
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HARTFORD- On Monday, Ron Gonzales, 36, of Hanford, accepted a misdemeanor child endangerment plea offer and was sentenced shortly after. Gonzales is the father of the 12-year-old and 6-year-old brothers involved in the Dec. 30 shooting that wounded the younger boy in the chest, Kings County District Attorney officials reported.
Going into sentencing Monday, Gonzales faced a maximum penalty of one year in county jail, Chief Deputy DA Patrick Hart said. However, the father was sentenced to three years probation.
"The major term (of his probation) is that (Gonzales) will have to record some public service announcements that will be airing on local television" stations, Hart said. "Basically, they're a message from a father who's been in the middle of this type of tragedy and is trying to convey the seriousness of leaving guns where kids can get to them.
"We think the message coming from a father, who had his own child shot through his own negligence, is going to be a much stronger message than a message coming from me, the chief of police or other law enforcement sources," Hart said. Gonzales "can convey the grief he feels much more strongly than a member of law enforcement who, essentially, is looking at it from the outside."
The shooting occurred at approximately 8:30 a.m. Dec. 30 at the Gonzales residence located in the 1000 block of Jordan Way. Apparently, the 12-year-old "accidentally" fired a .22-caliber revolver at his 6-year-old brother, Hanford Police Department officials reported.
Hart said the boys retrieved the gun - which was unloaded - from under a cushion in a couch in the living room where Gonzales stored it. The handgun, which has a capacity to hold six rounds, only had one expended round when officers located it later.
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NORFOLK — An 8-year-old boy found a gun at a baby-sitter’s house and shot himself in the hand early today, according to a city police spokeswoman.
The child was brought to Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters for treatment after the 12:08 a.m. shooting, which happened in the 400 block of E. Little Creek Road, said Officer Valorie Massingill. No charges had been filed, and an investigation was underway, she said today.
The child’s wound was not life-threatening, she said.
The boy was being cared for at a neighbor’s house, she said. He poked around and found the weapon, and fired it, Massingill said.
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GREAT FALLS- A hunters' education instructor accidentally fired a gun inside the Four Seasons Arena Friday at the Montana Hunting and Fishing Outdoors Show.
People, including a woman and her child, were in the area, but no one was hurt.
Sheriff's Capt. Dan Smrdel said the man, who was helping run the Fish, Wildlife and Parks booth, was checking a weapon and clearing it when the gun discharged into the floor. The bullet ricocheted and hit a wall.
"They were very lucky no one was struck," Smrdel said Monday.
The shot was fired around 6 p.m., an hour after the show opened. Sheriff's deputies investigated, turning the case over to the county attorney's office to decide if any charges would be filed.
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RIDLEY TOWNSHIP - The man charged with the accidental fatal shooting of his younger brother plans to enter a guilty plea next week, his attorney said Monday.
Patrick Sharkey, 20, of the 1300 block of Constitution Avenue in the township’s Woodlyn section, waived his preliminary hearing Monday before District Justice Vincent Gallagher.
Sharkey is charged with the Nov. 26 shooting of his 12-year-old brother, James "J.J" Sharkey, in the family’s home.
Police say Sharkey was in a bedroom watching TV with his younger brother and several other people at about 9:50 p.m. when a .22-caliber revolver the older Sharkey was handling discharged. The bullet struck "J.J." in the head.
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SPRINGFIELD- An 11-year-old Springfield girl was accidentally shot and killed Saturday by her 15-year-old cousin while he was unloading a .270-caliber deer rifle, according to Webster County Sheriff Ron Worsham.
The girl, Madeline Cara Webb, died at about 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon at her uncle's home northeast of Rogersville.
"Basically, she died instantly," Worsham said.
