Florida toddler, 3, fatally shoots himself with dad’s gun, left in parent’s bedroom nightstand

(2400 block Nectarine Road, Daytona Park Estates, DeLand, Image credit: Google Maps)

On the evening of February 15, many of us received our first hint of tragic news when Florida’s Volusia County Sheriff’s Office announced to the public that “deputies responded to one of the worst calls imaginable. A 3-year-old boy has died after shooting himself with a handgun. The incident was reported at 6:22 p.m. at a home on the 2400 block of Nectarine Road in Daytona Park Estates, DeLand.”

On Thursday night, February 16, Sheriff Mike Chitwood held a media briefing on that tragic death of the three-year-old who shot himself with a handgun found in his parents’ bedroom.

Deputies responded to a pair of frantic 911 calls around 6:22 p.m. Wednesday reporting the shooting at a home on Nectarine Road in the Daytona Park Estates neighborhood of DeLand.

The first deputy arrived on scene at 6:29 p.m. and attempted life-saving measures. Sadly the boy’s injuries were too severe, and he was pronounced deceased at the nearest hospital at 7:03 p.m., according to NBC News.

The initial investigation indicates the 3-year-old was home with his 16-year-old sister and 7-year-old brother while their parents were at Publix. The 3-year-old went into the parents’ bedroom and was able to remove a handgun from his father’s nightstand. He discharged the firearm once resulting in the fatal injury. ~ Volusia County Sheriff’s Office

ABC News shared the Sheriff as saying that the gun was discharged once, and according to the incident report, the toddler shot himself in the face.  Sheriff Chitwood characterized the 16-year-old’s 911 call as “heartbreaking.”

The father is a Florida state corrections officer who indicated his firearms were normally kept in a safe in the bedroom. The safe’s electronic lock function had stopped working, and the firearms were instead placed (1) on top of the refrigerator in the kitchen, and (2) in his nightstand.

At his media briefing, Sheriff Chitwood stated that the case will be fully investigated and submitted to the State Attorney’s Office for review.

“I cannot imagine there’s anything in the law books that can punish that family more than what happened last night,” the sheriff said.

Florida law (FSS 784.05) states that following the accidental shooting of a child, “no arrest shall be made prior to 7 days after the date of the shooting. With respect to any parent or guardian of any deceased minor, the investigating officers shall file all findings and evidence with the state attorney’s office with respect to violations of this subsection. The state attorney shall evaluate such evidence and shall take such action as he or she deems appropriate under the circumstances and may file an information against the appropriate parties.”

The state Department of Children and Families responded to the scene and is continuing to dedicate resources and supervision to the family. The first responders involved will also be receiving services in light of the trauma of the incident.

“Clearly, you have to say it: This should never have happened,” Chitwood said at his Feb. 16 news conference.

“What we’re assuming is the parents go to Publix. Leave the 16-year-old in charge. Probably done it a million and one times. For some reason … the 3-year-old wandered into the bedroom and got into the end table. And when he got into the end table, he picked the gun out and he turned it toward himself and he shot himself point-blank range.”  ~ The Miami Herald

Asked what he would say to other families about storage of firearms at home, Sheriff Chitwood responded: “I would like them to listen to that 911 call. I would like to have them hear the 16-year-old say, ‘My brother shot himself and he’s not breathing.’ I think if you heard that, you would run out right now, and buy a gun safe.”

For more on this unbelievably tragic story, see the video below.

(Source and Sheriff Mike Chitwood cover photo: Volusia County Sheriff’s Office)

Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today   /   Follow Richard on Facebook. Twitter & Instagram