New details on 11-year-old boy accidentally shot by sibling in NE Miami-Dade apartment
NORTHEAST MIAMI-DADE - Miami-Dade Police released new details Friday about the tragic death of an 11-year-old boy inside his parents' apartment on Thursday night.
The child was the son of a Miami-Dade corrections officer.
They say the 13-year-old brother of Shemarion Burse had discovered a handgun inside a firearm case inside his parents' master bedroom closet and while he was handling it, it accidentally discharged.
A bullet struck Shemarion in the chest.
He was airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital but did not survive.
While gun owners can be held liable in such cases, police said they do not expect to file charges in this case.
A neighbor describes the difficult moments shortly after arriving home from work with her young daughter Thursday.
"Everyone was panicking and screaming," she said.
Around 5 p.m., she thought she heard someone drop something onto the floor at her apartment building.
She quickly realized it was much more severe.
On Thursday evening, she says she performed CPR on 11-year-old Shemarion inside his parents' apartment.
"It's a very quiet community, so kids screaming for help was very odd to me," she said.
She opened her front door to children in distress.
"I called 911. I went inside the house. The baby was there, blood everywhere, and I proceeded to help."
"I was nervous and in shock," she added.
She said the operator told her to get a towel to press over the wound.
Shemarion's brother then asked her to perform CPR.
"I proceeded to do CPR, mouth-to-mouth until he stopped breathing. And then I just stopped."
At this point, she felt Shemarion had died.
"I just apologized to the person that was over him. I knew he was a sibling also. I just walked out of the house and started to break down myself."
For the neighbor, shock and devastation remain.
"Him just laying there and taking his last breath was traumatic. They were scared. I can't even describe the feeling. It's unimaginable."
Police say Shemarion was at home with four other siblings between the ages of 9 and 15, at Horizons North apartment complex at 645 Ives Dairy Road, when 911 received the call at 5:09 p.m. about the incident.
On a fundraising website, his mother posted a picture of Shemarion, with his nickname "Fat Boy." She said on the post that her son was "loving, playful and always there to put a smile on your face when needed."
CBS4's Peter D'Oench spoke with another neighbor, Geraldine Ostanne, who said, "I am heartbroken about the whole situation. I have three kids: a 13-year-old daughter, a 9-year-old son, and a baby. I just don't like to hear about these stories of guns in homes. I think it must be very hard for the family who are devastated about the whole situation."
"Even though the gun was in a safe place, I feel they shouldn't be around children at all. They shouldn't even know where guns are," Ostanne said.
"This is a sad, sad day for Dade County. Even though we know there is the constitutional right to own guns, we have to make sure that everyone knows this comes with great responsibility. That's why we urge parents to make sure that they educate their children and that those weapons are well secured," said Miami-Dade Police Detective Alvaro Zabaleta.
"It only goes to show that anyone in this community can be impacted, from law enforcement officers to corrections officers and doctors, lawyers and nurses. Any one of us can be affected."
