Six-year-old child shot by sibling in US

A six-year-old girl has been shot in the chest with a handgun by her teenage brother in the US state of Florida and is in critical condition in a hospital.

The accidental shooting occurred at around 7 p.m. local time (2300 GMT) on Saturday in Oakland Park, while the two siblings were at home alone. The young victim was taken to Broward Health Medical Center, where she was listed in critical but stable condition, The New York Daily News reported on Monday.

“Her shirt was bloody, and you could see through a piece of gauze that she had a hole in her chest above the heart,” neighbor Justin Latourrette said. “Her eyes were wide open in a blank stare, like she was in shock. I’ll never forget that look.”
Other neighbors said the two were playing hide-and-seek when the incident occurred.

“The siblings had been home alone when the teen found the handgun,” Broward Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Dani Moschella said.

The police are investigating how the teenager was able to get his hands on the firearm.

“It is very difficult when dealing with children, specifically children who’ve been through a very traumatic situation,” Moschella stated. “This family will never be the same after tonight, no matter how it ends up.”

The event is the latest shooting incident in the United States involving children.

On April 30, a 5-year-old Kentucky child fatally shot his 2-year-old sister in the chest while they were at home doing chores.

In early April, a 4-year-old New Jersey boy got a .22-caliber rifle from his family’s home and shot and killed his 6-year-old friend.

On December 14, 2012, twenty children and six adult victims were fatally shot by a gunman — who later killed himself — at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in the town of Newtown in the US state of Connecticut. Earlier in the day, the assailant killed his mother in another location.

Every year, more than 30,000 people are shot and killed in the United States.

The US averages 87 gun deaths each day as a function of gun violence, with an average of 183 injured, according to the University of Chicago Crime Lab and the Centers for Disease Control.

The year 2012 was a record setting year for gun sales in the US.

However, calls for stricter gun control measures are growing louder, and the most recent nationwide polls show that the majority of US citizens support a ban on assault weapons.