A 5-year-old boy was accidentally shot in the pelvis by his father, police say
More than 50 children have been shot in the city so far this year.
A 5-year-old boy was shot in the pelvis Monday morning after police say his father was handling a gun and accidentally fired it.
Police responded to the 200 block of West Fisher Avenue at 9:20 a.m. Monday, where they found the boy suffering from a single gunshot to the left side of his pelvis. He was rushed to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children and is in stable condition, police said.
Capt. James Kearney, head of the Philadelphia Police Department’s nonfatal shooting unit, said investigators believe the boy’s father was handling a handgun inside his home when the gun accidentally fired and struck his son.
Kearney said the gun and the spent shell casing were removed from the house before police arrived. Investigators are working to recover the evidence.
Police also recovered a shotgun inside the house, Kearney said. The father, whom police did not identify, will be charged with illegal gun possession because he is prohibited from owning a firearm after being convicted of illegal gun possession last year, Kearney said.
The father, who is currently on house arrest in the earlier case, may face additional charges, Kearney said.
“This seems to be on the surface, an accidental discharge in the hands of somebody who shouldn’t have had a gun to begin with,” he said.
The boy’s 9-year-old brother, as well as other relatives and family friends, were inside the house at the time of the shooting, Kearney said.
At least four other children have been injured in accidental shootings this year, including incidents in which children accidentally shot other children with unattended weapons. Earlier this month, a 5-year-old accidentally shot himself in the leg with a relative’s gun. Then, two days later, a 12-year-old girl was accidentally shot by her 13-year-old brother.
More than 50 children have been shot in the city so far this year, and eight have died.
Last week, a 16-year-old boy was killed in Southwest Philadelphia, and later that night, a 12-year-old riding his bike was seriously injured after he was shot in the back in Point Breeze. On Friday night, a 16-year-old was critically wounded after he was shot in the face at 52nd and Market in West Philadelphia, police said.
Children make up about 10% of the city’s more than 500 shooting victims this year — a proportion that has grown in recent years as gun violence has spiked. And although shootings have dropped slightly this year, with homicides in the city down about 12% compared to 2022, the number of children shot remains at higher levels.