5 year old Chicago area boy shot in domestic shooting

A domestic shooting rampage took the life of a 5 year old Illinois boy on his birthday, along with 3 members of his family:

Matthew Meier was celebrating his 5th birthday by spending the night with his grandparents John and Janice Conta in Oak Lawn. What happened next authorities can't explain.

Sometime overnight, Matthew's uncle John Conta Jr. shot all three dead. He also poured gasoline in the basement and lit it, according to police and fire officials.

Autopsies conducted today determined that all of the people died from shotgun wounds. After shooting his family members, Conta Jr. committed suicide by shooting himself in the face, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. 

One of the first firefighters on the scene Wednesday morning entered the garage of the home in the 9800 block of South 51st Avenue as Conta Jr. pulled the trigger of a shotgun and killed himself too, police said. 

“What made him go into this rampage, I don’t know if we’ll ever know that,” said Oak Lawn Police Division Chief Michael Kaufmann. 

Conta Jr. had spent about a year working as a potato farmer in Russia before moving back with his parents a few months, police said. 

“When he came back, he seemed a little different,” Kaufmann said. “His mental state may have changed.”

Florida Middle school boy shoots himself accidentally

A middle school child in Florida accidentally shot himself and then said someone else had shot him. From the article:

Deputies trying to find the person who shot a 15-year-old boy Tuesday in Pine Hills didn't have to go far: He shot himself by accident, then lied about it, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said.

Calls reporting the shooting gave different addresses on Silver Star Road, so it took deputies about 15 minutes to find the boy, sheriff's spokeswoman Jane Watrel said.

Then they searched for a shooter until the truth came out.

The shooting happened in the J-Mart parking lot at the corner of Hiawassee and Silver Star roads. It was reported about 3:20 p.m.

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

5 month old North Carolina baby shot while sitting in car seat

A North Carolina man accidentally shot a 5 month old baby while she was sitting in her car seat on a porch. From an article:

Police say it appears that Arin Tavon Futrell of Durham shot the gun accidentally, firing one bullet that hit the girl in a hand and a leg. The girl was in a car seat on the porch when she was hit, said police spokeswoman Kammie Michael.

She was taken to a hospital with injuries that did not appear to be life-threatening, Michael said.

Futrell, 21, was charged with felony negligent child abuse resulting in bodily injury. He was also arrested on outstanding warrants alleging attempted breaking and entering and conspiracy to commit breaking and entering.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2014/02/19/3635952/police-5-month-old-wounded-by.html#storylink=cpy

9 year old Arkansas boy found dead of gunshot injury

A 9 year old Arkansas boy was squirrel hunting with his family when he disappeared into the woods with a .22 rifle. From an article:

According to the Union County Sheriff's Office, Hank Bollen, 9, was found around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday morning after an extended all night search. Hank's body was found about 200 yards away from his family's deer camp and authorities say he did have an unintended self-inflicted gunshot wound. 

Hank went missing around 11:00 a.m. Monday while he was squirrel hunting with relatives in the heavily wooded area south of U.S. 82 in the Braswell Corner-Shuler Road area near Marysville. 

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

3 year old shot in Florida

Another small child has been shot in what seems to be an accidental shooting. From an article:

Authorities said a 3-year-old Lake Worth girl died Thursday after what appears to be an accidental shooting.

Palm Beach County Sheriff's officials said Zuri Chambers was shot with an unsecured weapon. She and her father were the only two people in the house. Zuri was flown to Delray Medical Center, where she died Thursday night.

This case is under investigation.

15 year old Alaska boy injured while walking home from rabbit hunt

An Alaska teen was shot in the leg while walking home from a rabbit hunt. From an article:

An Alakanuk teenager was shot in the leg while walking home from a rabbit hunt Thursday, and troopers say they have no idea who fired at him, or why.

The 15-year-old was walking alone near the Yukon River at about 6:30 p.m. on Thursday when he was shot in the left calf, the Alaska State Troopers said in an online dispatch.

The wound appeared to be from a .22-caliber firearm, troopers said.

Troopers at an outpost St. Mary's weren't notified until 11 a.m. the next day, according to the dispatch.

Alabama man accidentally shoots 6 year old son

A 6 year old Alabama boy was injured when his father accidentally shot him in the face:

According to Huntsville Police Department, the victim's father accidentally shot the child while he was trying to unload his pistol.

The child was hit above his left collarbone.

Medical personnel attended to the child's injuries and determined they were not life-threatening.