An incident unfolded on Detroit's east side when a 16-year-old boy shot a 12-year-old family member, police say. The shooting, which occurred just before 10 p.m. at a home in the area of E. Robinwood Street and Saint Aubin Street, resulted in the younger child being hit in the arm but fortunately not sustaining life-threatening injuries. Emergency response teams arrived on the scene and provided aid to the victim before he was transferred to the hospital for recovery, WXYZ reported.
The teenage suspect was taken into custody following the event. According to the reports, the gun was retrieved behind the garage of the property by a K-9 unit. As the investigation continues, details regarding how the teenager obtained the weapon and whether it had been secured beforehand remain uncertain, FOX 2 Detroit noted. It has been confirmed that the shooting was deemed unintentional, and, there were six individuals in the household at the time, including two adults and four children.
Capt. Derrick Griffin with Detroit's 11th precinct implored gun owners to take heed, "This is another incident where we have a child shot in the city of Detroit. And my message to everyone who is a gun owner: Please secure your firearm. We care and we love the children, so secure your firearm so these types of incidents don't continue to happen," Griffin said, in a statement obtained by CBS News Detroit.
"Certainly, anyone being shot, it's not going to be a good day for them but, certainly when it's a child, that brings you to another level of emotion. So I would just assume that, it's a tragedy, it's going to be felt by not only the victim, but it's going to be felt throughout the family," Griffin told WXYZ. The circumstances behind the child gaining access to the firearm are part of an ongoing investigative effort by local authorities.
