5 Year old shoots himself - parents Charged

**crimenthusiast** · May 4th, 2008, 01:06 PM

Once again a gun has fallen into a child's hand.

From The Chicago Tribune http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/l...,5289185.story

The parents of a 5-year-old South Side boy critically wounded when he accidentally shot himself in the head Saturday evening have been charged with endangering the life and health of a child, a misdemeanor, Chicago police said early Sunday.

Cortney Rodgers Sr., 26, the boy's father, and his mother, Dorothy Hayden, 27, of the 6100 block of South Wabash Avenue, are scheduled to appear in court on the charges May 19. Rodgers also has been charged with violating the state's registration laws for firearms owners, also a misdemeanor.

The shooting occurred at 5:42 p.m. Saturday in the family's apartment in the Washington Park neighborhood. Police said the boy found the gun, believed to be a 45-caliber revolver, in a bedroom inside the apartment where the family lives.

The boy, whose identity was not released, was transported to the University of Chicago Comer Children's Hospital in "very serious" condition, according to Chicago Police Officer John Mirabelli. The boy remained in critical condition early Sunday morning.

**Death Angel** · May 4th, 2008, 04:26 PM

yeahhhh i don't think anyones going to touch this one

**ImmortalOne** · May 4th, 2008, 06:04 PM

You know... I can understand keeping a weapon in the house (I may or may not agree with it, but I can understand it). However logic dictates, do not leave said firearm loaded if there are children in the house.. these parents are justifiably being charged.

**Nell** · May 4th, 2008, 06:11 PM

Ok, since Immortal One is not a big scardey pants like me and got this started I will agree. My family kept lots of guns in the house while I was growing up. They were always loaded and in reach because they were for protection and my dad thought he had taught all of his children gun safety. Well he did but my 21 year old brother, after years of depression, picked up the biggest one we owned and shot himself. Even after 9 years I really still believe he wouldn't have impulsively done such a thing if a loaded gun wasn't available. So I don't keep guns at all.

Should my parents have been charged? No, my brother was 21, an adult. But they certainly made it easier for him.

**lisaznola** · May 4th, 2008, 06:18 PM

I feel horrible for the parents, but you do not keep a loaded weapon in a home with small children.
I grew up in a home with various guns, but my dad kept them stored properly and unloaded. The 2 that were for protection were in locked boxes by his bed and his chair. We couldn't get to them.
Parents are responsible, even though I doubt anything the courts do to them will ever be worse than the hell they are putting themselves through.

**Nell** · May 4th, 2008, 06:21 PM

Then your father was way more responsible than mine. What makes me mad in these cases is just like my parents most don't see that they did anything wrong. My parents still keep guns just laying around.

**TheLittleFriend** · May 4th, 2008, 06:50 PM

I don't like guns, never will. But I have to have one at my home because I live in the city. My husband work at third shift, so I have to protect myself and my son if someone break in. I keep it in the case, LOCKED. If parents want gun for protection or hunting, they should get the case and lock the guns....to keep out of children's reach. It is pain to take case down and unlock....and do it over again, but it's better than find the child, dead with gun wound.

**Dakota Valkyrie** · May 4th, 2008, 06:59 PM

Years ago, "Primetime Live" did a show on kids and guns. They taught toddlers gun safety and then did a hidden camera on them alone in a room. The toybox had a real gun (disabled & unloaded) in it. Parents watched and predicted how their kids would behave. Some kids realized it was a real gun and STILL played with it and pointed it at each other.

They also did a bit with older age (8-12 I think). Parents who had guns in the house watched as Primetime sent in similar aged actors. When they turned talk to guns, many of the kids brought out their parents guns - even disclosing hiding places that parent thought their kids were unaware of.

Most surprised was a woman who was an NRA safety instructor whose kids had grown up around guns. Her well trained kids acted like all the other kids despite their life long training.

Primetime later followed up with an experiment involving 50 teen boys : The Lure of a Gun: Why Can't Kids Resist?

I don't have guns in the house, but several of my kids do and other family members also. All are locked and in gun safes.

I'm not sure what it would be like if we lived in an area where people think guns are needed for safety rather than hunting. I think I would opt for safe kids and a baseball bat at my bedside. My kids are there all the time, burglars not so often.

**ImmortalOne** · May 5th, 2008, 02:02 AM

My father-in-law informed us after we had been visiting for 2 days that there were 5 guns.. (FIVE) in the house and loaded. I was like WTF? You see we brought our three kids... and just now you are saying something? I was quite angry and we stayed at another family members house the rest of the trip because of how unhappy I was. Thankfully my husband agreed with my decision.