The father of a 5-year-old boy who accidentally shot himself in the head last month in Eustis has been arrested, according to police.
D D N, 49, was arrested Sunday after turning himself in.
Eustis police said the child, who has autism, somehow obtained the gun on June 28 and shot himself. The gun belonged to the boy’s father, police said.
Family members said their firearms were typically stored inside lock boxes on the top shelf of a bedroom closet.
According to an affidavit, the boy’s father had slept with him and had the gun under a pillow. When the boy’s father left the room to use the restroom, that’s when he heard the gunshot, the affidavit said.
A neighbor, who is a licensed flight nurse, helped the child before police arrived, according to a case report.
The child was airlifted to Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and underwent surgery, according to police, who said last said that the boy was in stable condition.
“When you think about it, a five-year-old boy or any child, for that matter of fact, getting shot with a gun, an accidental shot — it makes you really start putting things in perspective how young kids have access to guns,” Eustis Police Chief Craig Capri said last month.
N faces charges of neglect of a child and culpable negligence.
The family is cooperating with the investigation, police said.
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Source: Clickorlando
