6-year-old girl fatally shot by unsecured weapon in parked vehicle, Detroit police say
A 6-year-old girl was killed in an accidental shooting on Monday in a shopping center parking lot in Detroit, authorities say.
Detroit Police Assistance Chief Charles Fitzgerald was visibly upset as he briefed news media about the situation Monday afternoon.
"Here once again with just some horrible, horrible news," Fitzgerald said about the fatal shooting.
A mother had driven up to the location to get some food at a nearby restaurant. As she went to the building, she had left five children in the vehicle unattended. There was also an unsecured weapon in the car, the police officer said.
One of the children ran after the woman to get her attention, but in the meantime, the 6-year-old was fatally struck in the head.
The child and other family members were taken to an area hospital.
"This is preventable, preventable," Fitzgerald said, explaining that this has happened to other families recently. "We have safe storage for a reason. Secure your weapons."
The recent cases that the officer referred to include one on Sunday morning, during which a 6-year-old was injured when she accidentally shot herself with an unsecured weapon.
Officers are investigating how and why the weapon was unsecured, and will present their investigation findings to the Wayne County Prosecutor's office.
Two years ago, new gun safety measures went into effect, requiring gun owners to keep unattended weapons unloaded and locked with a locking device or stored in a locked box or container if a minor is present.
There are penalties for violating the act. According to Michigan law, if a minor fires the gun and inflicts harm on themselves or another individual, the person who failed to properly store the gun could face a felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison, a maximum fine of $7,500, or both.
Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield issued the following statement on Monday:
"The family tragedy that happened today on Gratiot and Harper is absolutely heartbreaking. I join the entire city in mourning the lost of this innocent child. What makes this even more heartbreaking is that it was completely avoidable. This is the second time in the past few days that a child in our city has been shot with a parent's unsecured gun. By the grace of God, the other injured child will recover. As a community, we cannot allow this to happen again. I have instructed my office of Neighborhood and Community Safety to work with DPD and other community partners to redouble our City's collective efforts to educate the public on the importance of gun safety and to provide training and resources to protect our children."
