A Highland neighborhood came together this weekend for a candlelight vigil after a 2-year-old boy died Thursday, authorities say, when he found a handgun tucked between the cushions of a couch and shot himself. Mourners lined the sidewalk with candles, toys, and flowers outside the home while deputies continued their investigation. The child's death has renewed urgent calls from local law enforcement for residents to secure firearms in homes where children live or visit.
Deputies from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department were called around 5:27 p.m. Thursday to a home on the 6900 block of Victoria Avenue, where they performed CPR on the boy before he was taken to a hospital and later pronounced dead, according to the Los Angeles Times. Investigators say the child found a loaded gun hidden between two couch cushions. The boy's mother, Jamaria Cobb, and her boyfriend, Armand Bright, were arrested on suspicion of child abuse causing great bodily injury or death and are being held at the San Bernardino County Central Detention Center on $1,350,000 bail.
Neighbors Hold Candlelight Vigil
Residents from the neighborhood gathered near the home to pray, leave mementos, and try to make sense of the loss. Local news video showed small groups huddled together, holding candles and embracing one another in the evening light. Coverage by NBC Los Angeles captured the quiet vigil and neighbors' emotional pleas for safer storage of firearms.
"We encourage all gun owners to lock up their weapons," Gloria Orejel of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department told reporters, urging parents to keep guns out of children's reach, according to ABC7. Deputies also said a second child who was inside the home was taken into custody by Child and Family Services as detectives continue their probe.
Arrests And The Law
Cobb and Bright face suspicion of a felony charge prosecutors use when caretakers' actions or omissions put a child at serious risk. California Penal Code §273a, the state child endangerment statute, makes it a crime to willfully cause or permit a child to be placed in circumstances likely to produce great bodily harm or death.
How This Fits A Wider Pattern
Public health research shows that most unintentional firearm deaths among children occur in the home after a child gains access to an unsecured weapon, a pattern documented by federal surveillance data. The CDC and child safety groups point to locked safes, unloaded storage, and trigger or cable locks as proven ways to reduce risk.
Anyone with information about the Highland case is asked to contact the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Specialized Investigations Division at (909) 890-4904 or submit an anonymous tip by calling or texting REPORT to We-Tip at 844-909-3006, according to CBS Los Angeles. Investigators are asking anyone with video or other evidence to come forward as the probe continues.
For grieving neighbors, the vigil was a small, public act of solidarity and a stark reminder of the stakes of unsecured firearms. Prosecutors will review the Sheriff's investigation before any formal charging decisions are filed.
