A tragic incident took place in Houston, Texas, on Sunday, March 14, when a 3-year-old girl picked up a loaded semi-automatic pistol and accidentally shot her 4-year-old sister in the face, resulting in her death. The girls were playing in a bedroom when the shooting occurred at around 7:30 p.m.
According to Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez, there were five adults present in the home at the time of the incident, and it appears that one parent thought the other was watching the toddlers, leaving them unsupervised in the bedroom.
The family members heard a single gunshot and immediately ran into the room, finding the 4-year-old unresponsive on the floor.
Gonzalez said that the incident appears to be unintentional and that all the adults in the home were detained for questioning. The police are investigating whether the gun owner had properly stored the weapon or was negligent.
This is yet another tragic case of a child gaining access to a firearm and accidentally hurting someone else. Gonzalez reminded gun owners of their responsibility to secure their weapons in a safe place. He emphasized that simply telling young children not to touch the firearms is not enough, and more measures need to be taken to prevent such tragic situations.