Newsweek
People at the home initially claimed the toddler was hit during a drive-by shooting.
A 2-year-old boy died after accidentally discharging a gun he was handling on Christmas Eve, according to police.
Officers responded to a home in Independence, Missouri, at about 4:30 p.m. after receiving a report of the shooting, local station KCTV reported. People at the home initially told them the boy was shot during a drive-by shooting.
But by 9 p.m., investigators determined the child was handling the gun at the time it discharged, according to the station. Authorities pronounced the child dead several hours after the shooting.
One adult considered a person of interest by police allegedly fled the home where the boy was shot. Police are working to take this person—who they have not publicly identified—into custody, the station reported. Officers believe the person wrecked their vehicle about four miles away from the home before taking off on foot.
Since February, police received 26 calls to the home, including a report of shots fired about a month ago, KCTV reported.
Neighbor Savannah Carter, who has a 3-year-old son and 2-month-old daughter, told the station she was devastated but “not surprised” by the incident.
“Oh, I’m extremely mad,” she said. “I mean, I call, like I said, I call the cops all the time. I mean, what else can I do? Am I going to have to come up with a petition or what?”
Police have not…
