Girl, 4, finds gun, shoots cousin in face
A 4-year-old girl shot her 2-year-old cousin in the face Monday morning after she found a gun at their uncle's house, police said.
Aurelio John Cereceres Jr. was in critical condition at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix police Sgt. Lauri Williams said. The bullet lodged in the toddler's neck.
The shooting happened about 8 a.m. at the uncle's house, in the 2500 block of North 58th Lane. advertisement
The boy's father owns the .25-caliber semiautomatic pistol for protection because he has been threatened in the past, Williams said.
Normally he leaves it on top of the refrigerator, but on Monday he left it on top of a low entertainment center where the girl was able to reach up and grab it, Williams said.
"They're just naturally curious," she added.
The gun was unholstered and fully loaded.
The gun went off as the girl was playing with it. The girl played with the weapon at the end of a couch and accidentally shot her cousin, Williams said.
The homeowner was asleep at the time, and the boy's father was taking another child to school.
Detectives were interviewing witnesses and family members Monday.
A child psychologist was talking to the girl, who was traumatized, Williams said.
Detectives will send the case to the Maricopa County Attorney's Office, where prosecutors will decide whether to charge the boy's father with child neglect.
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepu...kidshot05.html
yay , for more dumb people with loaded guns !keeping America SAFE
