LEHI, Utah — An 8-year-old boy has died after accidentally shooting himself with a loaded gun left in a car while his mother was inside a Utah convenience store, police said.
The boy died at a hospital on Tuesday morning, police said.
The shooting appeared to be “unintentional and self-inflicted,” police said in a statement.
The gun was under a seat in the car, Livingston said.
Doug Shields said he was putting gas in his vehicle when he heard the gunshot and then a woman screaming.
He told KSL and KUTV that he heard the mother say the boy found the gun under the seat.
Monday’s shooting happened less than two weeks after a 5-year-old Utah boy died after accidentally shooting himself with a handgun at his house in Santaquin, which is about 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City.
No charges are currently pending against the mother of the Lehi boy, Livingston said.
Police are trying to determine who was handling the gun at the time of the shooting.
—– This story has been updated to correct that the shooting victim in St. Louis was a girl, not a boy.
LEHI, Utah — According to authorities, an eight-year-old child accidentally shot himself with a loaded gun that was left in a car while his mother was inside a convenience store in Utah, resulting in his death.
At 7:40 p.m., the boy was by himself in the car. m. He shot himself in the head on Monday in Lehi, a city located roughly 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City, according to Jeanteil Livingston of the Lehi City Police Department, who spoke with KSL-TV. According to authorities, the boy passed away at a hospital on Tuesday am.
According to a statement from the police, the shooting seemed to be “unintentional and self-inflicted.”.
According to Livingston, the gun was hidden beneath a seat in the vehicle. She stated that investigators are unsure of whether the safety was ever activated.
Doug Shields claimed that he heard a woman scream and then heard a gunshot while he was filling up his car. He proceeded to the vehicle where the incident occurred. He reported what he heard the mother say—that the boy found the gun under the seat—to KSL and KUTV.
Less than two weeks had passed since a 5-year-old Utah boy lost his life after unintentionally shooting himself in the handgun at his Santaquin, Utah, home. Santaquin is located roughly 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Salt Lake City.
It is not illegal in Utah, according to the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, to leave a firearm unattended and available to an unsupervised minor. Additionally, the state does not mandate any particular method of storage for unattended firearms or the inclusion of a locking device in the sale of a firearm.
According to Livingston, the mother of the Lehi boy is not presently facing any charges. The shooting is still being looked into.
At St. Four-year-old Louis passed away on Monday as a result of a gunshot wound she received while in a home without any adults present and with three other kids under ten years old. Who was holding the gun at the time of the shooting is being investigated by the police.
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It has been updated in this story to reflect that the St. Not a boy, but a girl, Louis was.
