Upper Darby woman wounded after 4-year-old son shoots her with handgun, police say
The 34-year-old woman suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being shot in her right thigh, police said. She and her son were lying in bed when the gun went off as the boy was playing with it.
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A 4-year-old boy in Upper Darby accidentally shot his mother in her right thigh while playing with a handgun, police said Friday.
The shooting took place inside the family’s home on Burmont Road just before 11 a.m. as the woman, 34, and her son were lying in bed, according to Upper Darby Police Superintendent Tim Bernhardt.
Both were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment: The mother for her gunshot wound, and the boy for burns on his hands from firing the gun.
Bernhardt said neither the mother nor another adult male living at that address have criminal histories that would’ve prevented them from owning a gun. Still, it was unclear who had purchased the firearm.
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“It’s very frustrating. These guns should be secured, locked and nowhere near children,” Bernhardt said. “Thank God she’ll be OK, and the child will be OK.”
Bernhardt said the investigation into the shooting was ongoing, and it was too early to determine whether criminal charges for negligence would be filed.