Ohio toddler injured in shooting

An Ohio toddler has been injured in a shooting that took the life of her mother.

Photo from http://www.newsnet5.com/

From the article:

"A toddler injured in a shooting that left her 22-year-old pregnant mother dead in Brown County is "improving," the child's father said Friday.

Brittany Stykes, of Ripley, was found shot to death Wednesday evening inside a car that crashed along a stretch of U.S. Route 68.

Stykes was found inside her Jeep about a half-mile from the intersection of U.S. Route 68 and Gooselick Road before 8 p.m. She was with her 14-month-old daughter, Aubree, who received a head wound.

Shane Stykes, Aubree's father, was laying in bed with his daughter inside Cincinnati Children's Hospital Friday and told NewsChannel5’s sister station WCPO that the toddler is breathing on her own.

"I'd say she's going to be here for a while," Shane Stykes said.

Stykes and Aubree were found by Craig Labell, who pulled over and called 911 when he saw their vehicle. He initially thought Stykes had simply driven her SUV off the road and into a wooded area between Georgetown and Ripley.

"There's a Jeep off the road in the woods. Looks like somebody drove off the road into the woods and they're passed out at the wheel. Looks a like a girl, female in her 20s or 30s," he told a Brown County dispatcher.

Law enforcement officials responded to the call expecting to investigate a single-vehicle accident. But once at the scene they found Stykes slouched over the steering wheel with multiple gunshot wounds.

She had been shot at least once in the head, and was pronounced dead at the scene. Stykes was four months pregnant.

Brown County authorities said multiple bullets had been fired through the driver's side of the vehicle and passed through the passenger side.

Labell also found Aubree inside the vehicle. She was covered in blood and crying, he told the 911 operator.

"There's a baby in the car seat…The baby is bloody, but conscious,” he told the dispatcher before turning his attention back to Stykes. “I'm trying to see if the mother's breathing."

Investigators said Aubree was at least grazed by one of the bullets that contributed to the death of her mother. They said the bullet passed through Stykes, hit the driver's headrest and struck the infant in the head.

The child, who was conscious and crying at the scene, was initially transported to Southwest Regional Medical Center in Georgetown, Ohio to be treated."

8 year old Louisiana boy kills 90 year old caregiver

This case is almost too tragic. An 8 year old boy apparently intentionally shot his 90 year old caregiver:

Louisiana law enforcement officials say an 8-year-old boy intentionally shot and killed his elderly caregiver Thursday evening after playing the video game "Grand Theft Auto."

According to WAFB-TV, the shooting, which the East Feliciana Parish Sheriff's Office has called a homicide, took place in a mobile home park near Slaughter, La. The woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene, was reportedly found with a gunshot wound to the head. It is believed that the 8-year-old shot her while she was in the living room watching television.

"Although a motive for the shooting is unknown at this time, investigators have learned that the juvenile suspect was playing a video game on the Play Station III "Grand Theft Auto IV", a realistic game that has been associated with encouraging violence and awards points to players for killing people, just minutes before the homicide occurred," a statement issued by the Sheriff's Office said.

As Fox News notes, "Grand Theft Auto" is rated "M" for mature audiences and recommended for teens and adults aged 17 and older.

The woman, who has been identified as Marie Smothers, has been described as the "current caregiver" of the boy. It is, however, still unclear what her relationship was with the child. There is also conflicting information as to Smothers' age, with some news outlets identifying her as an 87-year-old woman and others indicating that she was 90.

The boy, whose identity has not been made known, has reportedly been released into the custody of his parents. According to the Advocate, the boy will likely not be charged with the crime because of his age, as dictated by Louisiana law.

Though the 8-year-old initially told investigators that the shooting was an accident, police say they believe the boy intentionally shot Smothers. But Law enforcement officials also said the child is believed to have had a "normal, loving, relationship" with the victim.

The gun used in the shooting is thought to have belonged to Smothers, according to the Advocate.

Experts have long debated -- and are still divided on -- the matter of whether or not violent video games, TV shows and movies trigger aggressive behavior in young people.

In April, a study published in the journal Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice claimed to show a link between violent video games and youth violence. That same month, however, an associate professor at Villanova University wrote that research had not found a "clear link between playing violent video games and real world violence."

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

3 year old New York City child injured by bullet in his apartment

A 3 year old was shot in a New York City apartment building:

A 3-year-old boy was shot in the head in his Brooklyn apartment early Saturday, the police said. A man, 22, who was in the apartment at the time was being questioned by detectives on Saturday evening, the police said.

A police officer stood outside an apartment where a 3-year-old boy was shot in Brooklyn.

The boy, whose name was not released, was in critical but stable condition at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell hospital. His mother was not home at the time, and he had been under the care of a female baby sitter, according to the police.

The shooting occurred around 3:30 a.m. at 520 East 21st Street in Ditmas Park. The bullet entered the left side of the boy’s head and exited through the back.

Investigators were still trying to determine the circumstances surrounding the shooting, and no arrests had been made by Saturday afternoon.

“It must have been an accident,” said Devon Reyes, 35, a friend of the man in the apartment.

Residents of the building identified the mother as Nichelle Edwards. Sean Gomez, 50, a neighbor and friend of the family, said the boy had been mauled by a pit bull this summer; family friends said he was still recovering from his injuries when he was shot.

“That 3-year-old suffered more than any adult suffers in his whole life,” a family friend who declined to give his name said.

In 2006, Ms. Edwards was herself wounded in the hand and briefly hospitalized in a shooting at the building that killed a 34-year-old man.

Neighbors said the boy was playful and energetic. He was often seen in front of the building, yelling and running around with other children from the block.

“He talks to everybody,” said Shenice Toussaint, 22, a building resident. “It’s sad. I pray for the mother. It’s mind-boggling.”

Family friends described a small boy who had lived a difficult life.

“He was mauled by a dog, born premature and then shot in the head,” Mr. Gomez said.

Mr. Reyes said the boy “doesn’t deserve all that’s come to him.”

Indiana man and baby shot at in their car by another motorist

A man was driving in Fort Wayne, Indiana, with his baby in the back seat when another car pulled alongside, with three men in it.  The men opened fire on the man's car, hitting it just a foot away from the baby.  

Luckily, no one was injured.  The shooters were eventually captured.

From an article:

The driver told a NewsChannel 15 photographer that he was sitting in his car with his baby when another car pulled up and someone inside opened fire. The man and his child did not appear to be injured. According to NewsChannel 15 crew on the scene, the baby appeared to be three to six months old. 

"They hit the side that my son was on and the bullet was like about a foot from hitting his door," the driver said. 

It is not completely clear where the actual shooting took place, but the man who said he was shot at as he was turning onto Colonial Avenue off of Anthony Blvd.  

"After the shots were fires, I tried to ram their car and tried to get away from the scene," the driver said. 

Police told WANE they saw the suspects' car in the area shortly after they responded to the shooting. A short pursuit ensued and police chased the suspects to the Twin Oaks apartment complex where the suspects' car crashed into a carport. 

Police said three people ran out of the car. All of them have been arrested.

.

5-year old student brings loaded gun to Tennessee school and unintentionally fires it

A 5-year old child brought a loaded handgun to school in their backpack, in Memphis, Tennessee, taken from home, when the gun discharged.

Luckily, no one was injured.  The gun was secured by school staff.

From an article:

Memphis, Tennessee Police have confirmed that a 5-year old fired a gun in the school cafeteria just after 8:00 a.m. on Thursday morning and is in police custody. The gun, according to officials, was in the child’s backpack and discharged. 

No injuries were reported. But the police have the little kid in custody, so Memphis is safe from another gun happy thug. Why the parents aren’t in custody is yet to be determined.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

Georgia grandfather shoots his own 2 year old grandson

There has been a tragic situation in Georgia where a grandfather shot his own young grandson in an argument with the man's son:

A 2-year-old boy was shot and killed Tuesday night, allegedly by his grandfather during an argument, Gwinnett County police said.

Deandre Vega, who would have turned 3 in a few weeks, was on the driveway of his Lilburn-area home when he was shot shortly before 10 p.m., Cpl. Jake Smith said. The alleged shooter, Luis Efrain Torres, remained at the scene and was taken into custody when officers arrived, Smith said. Officers located the gun allegedly used in the shooting.

Just after 2 a.m. Wednesday, Torres was booked into the Gwinnett County Jail, charged with murder and aggravated assault. Torres was being held without bond early Wednesday.

Investigators believe a dispute between Torres and the boy’s father, Rochell McCoy, escalated to gunfire outside a home in the 5200 block of Stafford Drive, near Indian Trail Road.

“At this time, we don’t think he intended to actually shoot that child,” Smith said. “But we do believe he was trying to shoot someone else that was here.”

Neighbors called 911 after hearing gunshots, and officers arrived to find the injured child on the driveway of the home. The boy was transported by ambulance to the hospital, but did not survive, Smith said. No other injuries were reported.

3 1/2 year old Michigan boy shoots himself with gun found in home

Another 3 year old toddler is dead in Michigan because of a gun found laying around in the home:

Police in southeastern Michigan say a 3½-year-old boy picked up a gun that a man left on a closet floor and fatally shot himself.

Dundee police Sgt. Tom Redmond says gun belonged to a man who was staying with Damon Holbrook's family.

Thirty-year-old Joshua M. Greenhill was arraigned Monday in Monroe County District Court on a charge of careless discharge of a firearm.

The shooting happened Sunday at the home, which is in Monroe County about 50 miles southwest of Detroit. Damon's father and others were home at the time.

Redmond says Greenhill was negligent by leaving the loaded gun where a child could find it.

The sergeant says Greenhill had a concealed weapon license.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

7-year old Chicago boy shot by stray bullet

Seven-year old Tyvion Jackson had just returned from a picnic, in Chicago, and was walking on street while carrying a bicycle, when he was hit by a stray bullet under his arm and shoulder, in what may have been a gang shooting.

Luckily he will survive.  The shooter escaped, but a suspect has been captured.

From an article:

Police said a group standing on a corner down the block from the home in 4200 block of West Fifth Avenue began arguing with someone sitting in a car. Someone from the group pulled out a gun and opened fire. 

McDuffie had just made it in her house when she heard the shots. Tyvion was shot while he was helping his cousin bring her bike up some steps. 

"He just placed his arms up and said he had been shot," she said. "He heard the shots and he felt (the) shot in his arm." 

The gunman fled north. Police say they are questioning a person of interest. 

McDuffie said she became panic-stricken when she couldn't quickly find her cell phone to call 911. "My daughter had to call an ambulance," McDuffie said. 

McDuffie said doctors expect him to make a full recovery. 

Police said the shooting occurred in an area where the Four Corner Hustlers street gang has been embroiled in a conflict with several other gangs as well as feuding internally. .... 

McDuffie said she's lived in her two-story brick house for two years but Sunday night's shooting may have been the final straw. 

"Now he can't come outside," McDuffie said of Tyvion. "We have to move."

Bullets don't know when to stop.

3 Oklahoma kids shot someone because they were bored

We can hardly write about this one because it is so awful. In Oklahoma, 3 teen-aged boys decided they were bored so they shot someone on a jog past their house. From the article:

An Australian man attending an Oklahoma college on a baseball scholarship was shot and killed in what police described Monday as a random act of violence by three “bored” teenagers who decided to kill someone for the fun of it.

Christopher Lane, 22, of Melbourne, was found dead Friday while visiting the town of Duncan, where his girlfriend lives. Three boys, ages 15, 16, and 17, are in custody and face a court appearance Tuesday afternoon.

Christopher Lane, an Australian who was on a baseball scholarship at East Central University in Ada, Okla. Lane was in Duncan, Okla., visiting his girlfriend, when he was shot and killed Friday, Aug. 16, 2013.

Duncan Police Chief Danny Ford said Monday a woman called 911 after she saw Lane stagger across the road and fall to the ground in the south-central Oklahoma town of about 24,000 residents. Ford said Lane, who was staying with his girlfriend and her family in Duncan, had jogged past a home where the three boys were staying. He said the shooting appeared to be completely random.

Autopsy results are pending. Ford wouldn’t say how many times Lane was shot.

Ford said the 17-year-old has given a detailed confession to police, but that investigators have not been able to locate the murder weapon.

“They saw Christopher go by, and one of them said: ‘There’s our target,’” Ford said. “The boy who has talked to us said: ‘We were bored and didn’t have anything to do, so we decided to kill somebody.’

“They followed him in the car to that area, shot him in the back and drove off,” Ford said.

He said the district attorney is expected to file first-degree murder charges Tuesday, and all three will be arraigned at Stephens County District Court. It wasn’t known if the three will be charged as adults or as juveniles.

Sarah Harper, Lane’s girlfriend, told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that the two had only returned to the United States from Australia last week.

“He didn’t deserve any of this,” Harper told the network. “It’s heartbreaking that it was such a random choice those guys made that drastically altered so many lives in the process.”

Lane attended East Central University in Ada, about 85 miles west of Duncan. He started 14 games at catcher last year and was entering his senior year.

“He was an absolute joy to coach,” baseball coach Dino Rosato said in a statement issued by the school. “Chris was an extremely well-respected teammate. ... He set a great example for all of his teammates, but more importantly for the younger players. He was a mature student-athlete who his teammates could look to for advice and support.

Ford told Oklahoma City television station KOCO that one of the teenagers said they shot Lane for “the fun of it.”

The chief told the Duncan Banner that police detained the three boys near a car and had retrieved a dismantled shotgun from the vehicle, but that Lane had been shot with another gun that had not yet been found. He said police have had “problems” with two of the three juveniles previously. He did not elaborate.

Peter Lane, the boy’s father, told Australian broadcasters there was no explanation for his son’s death.

“It is heartless and to try to understand it is a short way to insanity,” he said.

Insane. Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

15 year old Louisiana boy shot at home on first day of school

A 15 year old Louisiana boy didn't go to school on the first day. He was shot while at home with a sibling and friends:

A 15-year-old Opelousas teenager has been declared clinically brain dead after a shooting incident on Friday, the first day of school.

Opelousas Police Chief Perry Gallow said the teenager didn’t go to school that day, but instead was playing with his brother and two other young men.

Exactly what happened is still unknown, but Gallow said it appears the young men had somehow acquired a handgun and were playing with it.

For reasons still under investigation, the gun discharged, striking the victim in the head.

He said police were called to the boy’s home at 2:31 p.m. Because of the age of the victim, he declined to identify the child.

“While he didn’t go to school, his friends said he was excited about school. He had just gotten a new pair of shoes,” Gallow said.

He said no charges have been files at this time but “charges will be forthcoming.”

Police first need to determine how the young men got the gun and exactly what happened.

“We are still trying to determine how the weapon discharged and for what reasons,” Gallow said.

In the meantime, he said parents need take better care of their weapons.

“This is a tragedy for all the families involved,” Gallow said.

“This is a consequence of playing with guns and not understanding what can happen if they discharge,” Gallow said. “The effects are permanent. This child’s life is gone.”

He said guns should never be in hands of inexperienced people, especially juveniles.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

3 year old Arizona boy accidentally shoots Dad in the butt while target shooting

A 3 year old Tucson toddler shot his Dad in the butt while the Dad was target shooting in the desert:

A man who was target shooting south of Green Valley was shot in the buttocks by his 3-year-old son Monday.

The man, 36, was target shooting in a desert area southeast of Interstate 19, near the Canoa Road exit shortly before 6:30 p.m., said Tom Louis, battalion chief for the Green Valley Fire District.

The boy shot his father with a .22-caliber rifle, Louis said.

"Fortunately, the patient's injuries were not life-threatening," said Louis.

The child was not injured during the incident, Louis said.

No information was released about how the child got a hold of the rifle.

The man drove himself to the Canoa Road exit and I-19 where he called 911. In addition to firefighters and Southwest Ambulance, deputies of the Pima County Sheriff's Department were dispatched to the scene, said Louis.

The man was treated at the scene and taken by ambulance to University of Arizona Medical Center.

"This incident illustrates the importance of using exceptional caution whenever children are allowed around guns," Louis said.

"It can take only seconds for things to go very badly. Thankfully this incident was relatively minor," he said.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

 

Distraught New Hampshire man shoots his 9 year old son

A man distraught over custody and the death of his brother shot and killed his 9 year old son in New Hampshire:

A man who gunned down his 9-year-old son at a New Hampshire YWCA before killing himself was struggling with the death of his brother and a bitter custody battle, his rabbi said.

Muni Savyon, 54, and son Joshua Sayvon were together for a supervised visit with an adult monitor at the center in Manchester when Sayvon pulled out a handgun, shot his boy and then himself, according to the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office.

Manchester cops raced to the neighborhood shortly after 10 a.m. following reports of gunfire. They discovered the bodies of father and son inside.

11-year-old showing off gun unintentionally shoots 14-year-old

14-year-old Jesse Arredondo, of Salem, Oregon, was shot in the shoulder by his 11-year-old friend.
According to a news report:

The 11-year-old brought the .45-caliber semi-automatic handgun to show it to his friends. 

While handling the gun, it went off and the bullet struck Arredondo in the shoulder.
He was taken to Salem Hospital to be treated. 

Deputies said the gun was owned by the 11-year-old's father. He told deputies that the gun is normally stored in a gun safe at their home, and he was not aware his son had gained access to the weapon. 

The district attorney's office will now determine if any charges should be filed against the 11-year-old boy or his father.

3 year old Texas boy wounded by a drive-by shooting

A 3 year old toddler was wounded in a drive by shooting in Texas:

A three-year-old boy was wounded in a drive-by shooting early Tuesday morning at his home in northwest Harris County.

The shooting happened just before 1 a.m. in the 20500 block of Cypress Gully near Cypress Prairie, according to the Harris County Sheriff's Office. According to investigators, the boy was walking inside a home when witnesses said they heard two gunshots. One of the bullets hit the boy.

The child's baby-sitter and another person were in the home at the time of the shooting, but they were not injured.

Deputies said the child, whose name has not been released, was flown by LifeFlight medical helicopter to Memorial Hermann-The Texas Medical Center. Details of his wound and condition were not released Tuesday morning.

Police are searching for a white Dodge Charger that may have been involved in the shooting. The car was seen speeding from the area after the shooting. No other descriptions were released.

Children should be able to be at home without being shot by stray bullets.

13 year old Indiana boy dies after being accidentally shot in chest

An Indiana 13 year old boy was shot and died from an accidental bullet to his chest.

Logan Armendariz ( photo
from linked article)

From the article:

Logan Anthony Armendariz, 13, was pronounced dead at St. Vincent Anderson Regional Hospital after suffering a single gunshot wound to the chest, according to the Anderson Herald Bulletin.

Armendariz, police say, was shot Monday in the 5700 block of Park Road in Anderson. Officers preliminarily believe the shooting was an accident, although it remains under investigation. Further details — such as who shot the boy — were not immediately available.

Armendariz was an incoming seventh grader at Daleville Junior-Senior High School, where he was an honor-roll student and played basketball, according to his obituary from the Robert D. Loose Funeral Home in Anderson. He also played youth baseball.

Daleville Community Schools Supt. Paul Garrison told The Herald Bulletin he expected grief counselors would be made available for students this week.

Armendariz is the second East Central Indiana child to be shot within an eight-day period. On July 28, 4-year-old Madison Dyer was airlifted to a Fort Wayne hospital after police say she was accidentally shot in in the head by her brother, who was reportedly aiming at a target in their yard in the 5600 block of South Jay County Road 300-E.

Capt. Patrick Wells with the Jay County Sheriff's Department told The Star Press Dyer accidentally ran through the line of fire of the .22-caliber rifle. Wells on Thursday said Dyer remained in critical condition.

Note that this was the 2nd accidental shooting of a child in 8 days in Indiana. The second one involved the shooting of a 4 year old who was shot by her brother aiming at a target.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

9 year old Texas boy accidentally shot and killed by 13 year old friend

In Texas, a grandfather is thinking about what happened when his 9 year old grandson was shot and killed by a 13 year old friend. From an article:

The grandfather of a 9-year-old boy killed in an accidental shooting has been released from jail.

A Clay County Jail dispatcher said Sunday that 56-year-old Danny Eugene Bowman was no longer there.

The Wichita Falls Times Record (http://bit.ly/11FixDo ) reports Bowman was arrested Friday on a child endangerment charge. That came shortly after grandson Daniel Wiley was killed by a shotgun blast to the face in rural Clay County.

According to a probable cause affidavit obtained by the newspaper, Bowman told deputies he left Daniel and a 13-year-old grandson alone with a disabled, 76-year-old great-grandmother while he drove to get beer. He told them the weapon is always loaded and unsecured.

The older grandson told deputies the gun discharged when he handed it to Daniel.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

Louisiana 3 year old child dies after being shot by 5 year old in home

Another toddler has died from a bullet shot by a gun held by a 5 year old Louisiana child. From an article:

The three-year-old boy shot in his south Monroe home this week has died. Now, obstruction of justice charges related to Thursday's shooting on Dixie Avenue are pending.

Police say the mother of the toddler called police after hearing a gunshot and finding the little boy had been shot. She told police that another child, 5-years-old, was playing with a loaded gun when it went off.

Police questioned several adults at the scene and believe they received statements that are not true.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

2 year old Alabama boy shot in fight between two women

A 2 year old was shot in a squabble between 2 women. From an article:

A child was shot and a woman stabbed in Tuscaloosa during what started as a fight between two women, Tuscaloosa police confirm.

The two women got into a fight around 1 p.m. Thursday at the Forrester Gardens Apartments off of James Harrison Parkway on Thursday afternoon, according to Tuscaloosa Police Chief Steve Anderson.

A press release issued by Tuscaloosa PD on Friday states one 33-year-old woman was stabbed once in the upper arm. Another altercation followed the first and a different female made an attempt to stab the 33-year-old female. The two suspects then left the area.

Afterward, a 33-year-old male fired two shots into an apartment he thought contained one of the suspects. One shot hit a 2-year-old boy in the lower body area. The child was taken to Children's of Alabama Hospital. His condition is unknown, but his injuries do not appear to be life threatening.

Javorris Connor, 33, is facing a first degree assault charge and a charge of discharging a firearm into an occupied building.

Shakiki Hill, 27, has been charged with attempted murder.

Charda Brown, 25, has been charged with second degree assault.

7-year old Michigan girl unintentionally shot by conceal carry gun owner target shooting next door

A 7-year old girl, Abby Wrobel, and her 2-year old sister, Ella, were swimming in a pool in

Abby Wrobel, age 7, at the scene of the shooting

Tekonsha, Michigan, when suddenly a .9mm bullet ripped through Abby's arm.

The shot had been fired from 180 meters away, in a field next door, where a man in his 30's, who is a conceal carry gun owner, was target shooting.

Abby is recovering.

From an article:

The Michigan man was practicing firing his 9mm handgun when the last bullet missed the target and traveled across a cornfield before hitting Abby Wrobel on Tuesday.  

She had been playing in the family's swimming pool in Tekonsha when the bullet ripped into her arm and narrowly missed hitting Abby's two-year-old sister Ella who was standing next to her.  

Her mother, Jodi Scherer, told Newschannel 3: ' I could have easily lost a child ...it’s just scary.' 

She added: 'It came from the field and actually hit her up here, I mean how does that happen?' 

The mother-of-six said her children had been playing by the swimming pool when they suddenly started screaming and running.  

'I ran up and Abby said, "I’ve been shot!",' Ms Scherer said.  

Her daughter described the moment she was shot as 'like a firework going into my arm'. 

The bullet went straight through her arm and fortunately did not damage any bones. 

Ms Scherer wants her neighbor, who has three children of his own, to be prosecuted. 'I mean, you can literally hear my kids playing at that house down there when they're outside. So he knew there were kids down there, he should have never been shooting this way,' she said.

Bullets don't know when to stop.

14 year old Wisconsin boy shot by relative at driving range

A 14 year old Wisconsin boy has been shot in an accidental shooting by a relative. From the article:

A 14-year-old Racine boy is hospitalized after being accidentally shot while target shooting with relatives in central Wisconsin.

Adams County sheriff's officials say the boy was shot about 6 p.m. Wednesday while in the Town of Strongs Prairie.

Authorities say the boy suffered a gunshot wound in the abdomen from a handgun being handled by a 64-year-old relative.

The boy was flown to a Marshfield, Wis., hospital, where he is in stable condition.

Investigators say the shooting probably was an accident.

4-year-old shot in head by 8-year-old brother

4-year-old Madison Dyer, of Portland, Indiana, was unintentionally shot in the head Sunday night.  According to a news article:

Madison was shot in the head when she dashed in front of her 8-year-old brother while he was target shooting.
Police say several adults and children were around a campfire while the boy was shooting a .22-caliber rifle and Madison ran into the line of fire.

Madison is in the hospital in Fort Wayne in critical condition.