A 3-year-old girl found a loaded gun in her Texas home Sunday and accidentally shot her sister, killing the 4-year-old, police said.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said the girls were in a bedroom at an apartment on Bammel North Houston Road in Houston, where they lived with their parents. Five adults, who were all family members or family friends, were at the home although none were supervising the girls, Gonzalez said.
"The 3-year-old girl gained access to a loaded semi-automatic pistol. Family members heard a single shot. They ran into the room and found the 4-year-old unresponsive," Gonzalez said.
The girl was pronounced dead at the scene after police responded to a 911 call from the family, Gonzalez said. "It just seems like another tragic story of, again, a kid gaining access to a firearm and hurting another person. And this time there was a fatal shot," Gonzalez said.
The Harris County District Attorney's Office will decide whether any of the adults will face charges based on the police investigation, which is still in the preliminary phase, Gonzalez said.
"Our hearts are broken. Our officers are pretty shaken up," Gonzalez said, noting that support staff would be on scene to help officers and family members. "The community is affected when a child loses his life in this way," González said, adding that the shooting was another preventable fatality with a firearm.
"We continue to send the message that this is very preventable," González said. "You have to make sure you are a responsible gun owner and keep your guns safe. It has to be more than just telling little kids not to touch guns. You know, we have to do a little more. We see too many tragic situations like this. ".
On the other hand, in Dallas, another Texas city, another shooting took place this Sunday that has left four people dead in an apartment building, according to several US media reports.
WFAA-TV reported that police confirmed officers were called to report a shooting around 7:10 p.m. in the Northwest Dallas area.
Police said four people were found with gunshot wounds and all the victims died at the scene. No information was immediately available on the victims.
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