4-year-old shoots cousin with gun left on patio, Georgia cops say. Family friend arrested
A family friend is facing charges after two children, a 2-year-old and a 4-year-old, were injured while playing with a loaded gun, Georgia authorities say.
The kids arrived at the emergency room at Kennestone Hospital around 12:30 p.m. Monday, according to the Marietta Police Department. Both were suffering from gunshot wounds.
Authorities arrested 23-year-old Johnel Green, a friend of the family who’s accused of leaving a loaded firearm unattended on an apartment patio. The 4-year-old got a hold of it and fired a shot, striking himself and the toddler, police said.
Green was booked into jail on two counts of second-degree cruelty to children, reckless conduct and tampering with evidence, according to police. He’s also charged with possession of a firearm by a felon.
The children, who are cousins, are expected to be OK. The 2-year-old has been released from the hospital, WSB-TV confirmed, and the 4-year-old was transferred to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
Marietta police spokesman Paul Hill said he hoped the incident serves as a teaching moment.
“If you know you’re gonna have kids around, or if you have kids yourself, you’ve got to do everything necessary to make sure those guns stay safe and you put them out of the reach of children,” Hill said, according to the news station.
Marietta is about 20 miles northwest of Atlanta.
This story was originally published September 15, 2021 at 11:30 AM with the headline "4-year-old shoots cousin with gun left on patio, Georgia cops say. Family friend arrested."