6-year-old shoots self in thumb with unsecured gun in Detroit

Child accidentally shoots self in thumb in Detroit

The 6-year-old was taken to an area hospital and is being treated for the non-life threatening injury.

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A 6-year-old boy got hold of an unsecured gun in a Detroit home and accidentally shot himself in the left thumb, police said.

The incident took place around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, in the 3100 block of South Ethel Street.

The child grabbed the gun from one of the rooms inside the home and then went outside, according to preliminary information from Detroit Police Deputy Chief Jacqueline Pritchett. While playing with the gun, it discharged and struck him in the thumb.

DPD: 7-year-old fires unsecured gun in Detroit, shoots self in hand

Detroit Police Deputy Chief Jacqueline Pritchett said the boy was taken to an area hospital after shooting himself in the thumb.

Police said the boy was under the supervision of his grandmother. No other children were inside the home at the time of the incident.

The 6-year-old was taken to an area hospital and is being treated for the non-life threatening injury.

"If you have a gun, have a safe. Do not have the gun in the child's eyesight or hand reach," Pritchett said. "And teach the children about gun safety. These are not toys, these are weapons they can kill."

A 6-year-old boy accidentally shot himself in the thumb with an unsecured gun in the 3100 block of South Ethel Street in Detroit on Wednesday, May 22, 2024.

A safe storage gun law went into effect on Feb. 13 – which requires unattended firearms to be unloaded and secured with a cable lock, or stored in a gun safe, if a minor is present.

Since then, cable-style gun locks have been made available for free in every local health department office and several law enforcement agencies in Michigan.