DETROIT – A 30-year-old woman faces a criminal charge after a 3-year-old boy shot himself in the head with a gun Friday at the Martin Luther King Apartments on East Lafayette Street.
The boy was reported to be in stable condition as of Saturday. Officials said he was still undergoing treatment on Sunday.
The Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office announced charges Sunday against Janette Ann Smith, of Roseville. She is charged with one count of careless, reckless, or negligent use of a firearm and is expected to be arraigned Monday morning (Jan. 17) at 36th District Court. The Prosecutor’s Office said Smith was visiting the boy’s mother about 4:45 p.m Friday to pick up some food that was prepared for her.
“It is alleged that Ms. Smith took off her coat with a handgun in the pocket and hung it on the chair in the living room,” reads the statement from the Prosecutor’s Office on Sunday. “When she went into the kitchen to speak with the child’s mother, there was a loud bang in the living room. The child found the weapon and shot himself in the head. He was privately transported to a local hospital by his mother and is currently receiving treatment.”
“It is getting very difficult to come up with new ways to say the same thing over and over again. If you own a gun and you know young children will be in your orbit, secure it so that there will be no access,” reads a statement from Prosecutor Kym Worthy. “If you are traveling with a gun, follow the law while doing so, and by all means make sure that children cannot get to it. Secure your gun and save young lives from death, serious injury or harm of any kind.”
Here is the report from Friday night: