A Washington woman is facing second-degree manslaughter charges after she left a loaded handgun in the front seat of her car and her 3-year-old son shot himself in the head while his mother left to get food.
STORY: Not Again! 3-Year-Old Shoots Self With A Handgun
Jahnisha McIntosh, 23, left her 3-year-old son, Julio Segura-McIntosh, unrestrained in a car after she placed a pistol under the driver’s seat. McIntosh’s boyfriend, Eric Vita, 22, is the gun’s owner and he was also charged. They both pleaded not guilty.
Pierce County Prosecutor Mark Lindquist said Wednesday:
“Nothing is sadder than the death of a child, and when the death is the result of criminal negligence, there needs to be accountability. Guns are inherently dangerous, and the law, as well as common sense, requires that guns be handled responsibly, especially around children.”
According to the Associated Press:
Julio Segura-McIntosh’s death on March 14 was the third child shooting in Western Washington within three weeks.
In Julio’s case, Vita and McIntosh had stopped for gas in Tacoma. Vita, who has a concealed weapons permit, removed his gun from his waistband to avoid alarming the clerk and placed it under the passenger seat, the prosecutor said.
Julio had unbuckled himself and climbed into the front seat to ask his mother for candy. McIntosh moved the gun from under the passenger seat to under the driver’s seat so Julio could not reach it. Then, she went inside the convenience store for food, leaving Julio unrestrained, the prosecutor said.
Julio found the gun and shot himself in the head. McIntosh’s 8-month old daughter was in the car at the time and was not hurt.
Friends and family told detectives that Vita routinely showed off the gun with a laser sight and on one occasion offered to let Julio hold the gun before another adult intervened.
Lindquist is correct, guns are dangerous and people who are reckless with them should be jailed.
SOURCE: AP
