Clarksville, TN – Clarksville Police responded to a frantic 911 call after a three year old child shot himself in the foot.
On July 22nd, around 5:00pm, Police responded to 139 Buttermere Drive in reference to a three year old child that had shot himself in the foot. When officers arrived, they found the three year old child in the kitchen with his mother who was treating the child’s gunshot wound.
The child’s mother was in the kitchen when she heard the gunshot. She found the three year old in the living room with a gunshot wound to the foot. She grabbed the child, took him to the kitchen, applied pressure to the wound, and elevated the foot. The child was transported to Vanderbilt by Lifeflight with non-life threatening injuries.
The preliminary investigation by Detective Tracy Woodruff indicated that the child had found the handgun unsecured and started to play with it on the couch. The child was on the couch when he discharged the Spring Armory XD, 9 mm, into his foot. There was a bullet hole located on the couch where the child was playing with the gun. Additionally, besides the mother , there was also a 10 month old child inside of the residence at the time of the discharge.
The investigation is ongoing and no charges have been filed.
The lead investigator is Detective Tracy Woodruff.
Second Firearm discharged by a child this year
This is the second incident of a child discharging an unsecured firearm. The last one occurred on July 8, 2012 and a 6 year old child discharged a firearm that was left unattended.
Police are recommending that anyone with firearms to ensure they are properly secured for the safety of adults and children in the residence.
