10-year-old in North Miami killed by accidental gunfire, police and family say
A 10-year-old boy in North Miami was killed by gunfire Monday night, in what police believe was an accidental shooting.
The child, who was home with his father and aunt, was alone when he found the weapon in his father’s bedroom, police said. According to police, the child’s father and aunt ran to the bedroom when they heard the single gunshot and found the child injured, the gun at his side.
He was rushed by ambulance to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“We don’t at this time, think that there was any foul play,” said North Miami Police Chief Cherise Gause.
Gause said the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office will work with North Miami Police on the shooting investigation. The shooting happened at a home in the 14000 block of Northwest Fifth Place at about 8 p.m.
North Miami Police Major Kessler Brooks said the child was found on the floor of his father’s bedroom. The father is estranged from the child’s mother, police said. Kessler said he wasn’t sure exactly where the gun was stored, but that his agency encourages safeguards like placing a weapon in a locked gun box or safe.
“It’s tragic,” he said.
