8-year-old Florida boy accidentally shoots, kills baby, officials say
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PENSACOLA, Fla. - An 8-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed a 1-year-old girl and injured a 2-year-old girl at a Florida motel on Sunday, authorities said.
The boy’s father left the gun holstered in his Pensacola motel room closet. After he left the room, his son found it and fired a round that passed through and killed the baby and struck the toddler, said Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons during a news conference Monday. The children who were shot belonged to the girlfriend of the father.
The toddler is expected to recover, Simmons said.
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The boy’s father returned to the room, took the gun and what investigators believe were drugs and left the room again, Simmons said. He is charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, two counts of culpable negligence by storing a firearm within easy of a minor resulting in injuries, tampering with evidence and failure to store a firearm in a required manner.
He was arrested and later released on $41,000 bond.