An eight-year-old kid died after accidentally shooting himself with a loaded shotgun as his grandmother left to spend time with friends.
Gracie Patton Mimms, 48, has been charged with criminal homicide and aggravated child negligence in connection with Phillip’e Woodard’s death in Nashville, Tennessee on September 14.
According to the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department, Phillip’e was at Mimms’ house that day when he was left alone with a loaded gun, Law and Crime reported.
“Mimms was determined to have been the adult responsible for Phillip’e when she departed the N. 2nd Street home to go spend time with friends,” according to the police. “She is accused of leaving him inside a room with a loaded shotgun out and easily accessible. Phillipe was handling the shotgun when it went off, killing him.
According to Youth Services detectives, Phillip’e was being watched over at home by his 10-year-old brother and a 16-year-old family friend. The teenager claimed to be asleep when the pistol discharged and went to seek help from neighbors after hearing the sound.
According to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, weapons are still the greatest cause of death among children and adolescents. The study also discovered that this disproportionately affects people of races.
The survey, published last month, discovered that for the third consecutive year, weapons killed more children and teenagers aged one to 17, than any other cause, including automobile accidents and cancer.
A second research, issued by the CDC last year, indicated that: “Approximately one-half of unintentional firearm injury deaths among children and adolescents occurred at home; playing with or showing the firearm to another person was the most common precipitator.” Overall, firearms used in unintentional injury deaths were frequently stored loaded and unlocked, and they were easily accessible from nightstands and other sleeping spaces.”
Child safety organizations encourage gun owners to store their guns appropriately. The US Justice Department recommends: “Unload it, lock it, and store it.”
In another case, a five-year-old child who accidentally shot himself with a gun he discovered in his parents’ bedroom has been photographed for the first time.
Brooks Thomas Wilson, a little boy described as “a happy and adventurous young boy” by his bereaved family, died suddenly on August 22, 2024. He died after locating a 9mm handgun in the back room of his residence on Thursday afternoon and firing a single shot to the head, according to Santaquin Police Department Lt. Mike Wall.
The boy’s parents, and possibly one of his brothers, were inside the house when the shooting happened, but they were not in the room with him. After hearing the gunshot, Brooks’ father ran to the room and began CPR on him, but the youngster unfortunately died at the site.