Four-Year-Old Finds Father’s Gun, Shoots Father and Herself

Stock image of a gun. (Brett_Hondow/Pixabay)

A Milwaukee four-year-old shot both her father and herself after finding a gun in her house on the morning of Oct. 20, according to multiple reports.

Fox News Carolina reported that both the four-year-old and her father, 33, had sustained non-fatal injuries and were taken to the hospital for treatment. Both are expected to survive, according to the news outlet. Fox 6 Now reported the gun belonged to the four-year-old’s father.

The accidental shooting occurred around 10:15 a.m. Authorities arrived at the four-year-old’s home located on the 3600 block of South 61st Street in Milwaukee, according to WISN. Milwaukee Because the four-year-old’s father lied to the police about the shooting, Milwaukee police arrested him, WISN reported.

“Any time there is a tragedy, it hurts all of us,” Lisa Klindt Simpson, the coalition coordinator for the Safe Kids Southeast Wisconsin said regarding the incident. The organization is part of Safe Kids Worldwide which strives to prevent accidents involving guns from happening.

She advised that people keep dangerous firearms locked up and out of reach of children, according to Fox 6 Now. “There are some easy tips parents and caregivers can follow to help keep their house safe if they have a gun in the home,” Klindt Simpson said.

“When you store that gun, always store the ammunition separately. Make sure the key is away from where the lock is so it’s not accessible to children,” said Klindt Simpson, Fox 6 Now reported.

“Take time—talk to your children. Teach them that the guns they see in their homes are different than the guns they see on TV or in games—that if they do see a gun, they should never touch it. Always get an adult, and let the adult know, ‘Here the gun is,’” She said, according to the news outlet.

It was estimated that nearly one-third of families, with children who are 17-years-old and under, have a gun in their possession, and Klindt recommended that parents teach their children about guns to keep them safe from harm, according to Fox 6 Now.

Currently, the prosecutors are reviewing the case for possible additional charges, but as of Oct. 21, no further charges have been filed against the 33-year-old father, according to Journal Sentinel Online. Police have not yet released the father’s name, nor have they revealed how the four-year-old came across her father’s gun, according to Fox New Carolina.

No further information has been released.