A 2-year-old US boy fatally shot his 22-year-old mother in their Northern California apartment, police said Monday. According to CBS NewsJessinya Mina died Friday of a single gunshot wound to her upper body after her son picked up an unsecured gun in a bedroom of the home and pulled the trigger. The loaded gun belonged to Andrew Sanchez, Ms. Mina's boyfriend. Sanchez now faces criminal charges in her death, officials said.
“At some point during the handling of that particular weapon, the toddler was able to manipulate the trigger, and it actually struck Mina while she was in bed,” Lt. Paul Cervantes said during a news conference, according to the outlet.
The mother of two was taken to a local hospital for treatment, but she was unable to make it. “It is devastating and absolutely serves as a stark reminder of the meaning and importance of being able to properly store your gun,” Cervantes said.
According to police, Ms Mina's children and her boyfriend were planning to go out for the evening and were relaxing at home when the shooting happened. The little boy's 8-month-old sibling was also home during the incident.
Officials said Mr. Sanchez left the loaded 9mm gun, which had no external safety feature, in the bedroom, in an area accessible to the children. He was taken into custody after Friday's incident and charged with child endangerment and illegal storage of a weapon.
Mr. Sanchez has no criminal history, Mr. Cervantes said, adding that detectives were working to determine who the gun is registered to. He has been released on bail for the time being.
“This is a very tragic and a very preventable and avoidable incident,” Cervantes said.
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In an online fundraiser created by Ms. Mina's sister, Jessica Rodriguez, she called her a woman “full of love and life and an amazingly beautiful mother.” Separately, she said in a statement to the outlet, “My niece and nephew will have to live on memories and stories of my sister instead of her presence. We will never be able to watch my sister carry out her lifelong goals and achievements. due to his negligence”.
Meanwhile, this incident comes after a 7-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed his 2-year-old brother in a truck parked at a California mall. It was also a few days after a 3-year-old accidentally shot and injured a 1-year-old sibling with a firearm stored in their home.
