Boy, 12, accidentally shot himself in the head in Homestead
MIAMI - A boy is hospitalized after he accidentally shot himself in the head in Homestead.
It happened Sunday in a gated The Shores community off SE 13th Street.
Homestead police said the 12-year-old boy somehow got a hold of the gun and ended up shooting himself.
The boy was airlifted to HCA Florida Kendall Hospital where he was listed as stable, according to police.
It's unclear at this time who owned the gun and what led up to the shooting.
Ruchi Anthony said she was horrified to learn what had happened in a home next to hers.
"Of course I would be scared, I am a parent and they should have had the gun under lock and key. At the same time, you are scared, but you're also afraid for your other children in the house. What is going to happen to them? It is an experience you don't want anyone to have," she said. "I would be livid. I would be out of my mind. I don't know what I would do."
Anthony said she constantly worries about her children coming in contact with anyone with a gun.
"It is terrifying because I have three boys myself and I am scared that one of them would grow up and meet someone with access to guns. It is so terrifying because you don't even know how much exposure your kids are going to get if they meet friends who have access to guns that much," she said.
This is the second time in the last two months that a child has been accidentally shot. In January, a teenage boy died after he was shot in the head while a group of children were playing inside a Miami Gardens home.
According to police, a group of children were playing with a firearm when it went off. A 13-year-old was struck in the back of the head. He was airlifted to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital where he died.
Gun safety experts say to make sure guns are always locked away with the ammunition stored separately.
They also recommend if your child is going to a friends house to ask the other child's parents if they keep guns in the house and if they are locked away.
