The daddy of a 3-year-old boy in Illinois who unintentionally shot and killed his mom with a gun he discovered within the household's automotive Saturday night has been arrested and can probably face firearm-related costs, in line with Dolton Police Chief Robert Collins.

Calling the taking pictures in a Chicago suburb "such a tragedy," Collins stated Monday afternoon that it is very probably that the taking pictures was an accident and that the daddy, whose identify has not been launched, didn't shoot the lady and even know the kid had the gun within the backseat of the automotive.

Advocacy group Everytown for Gun Security acknowledged that unintentional shootings by youngsters beneath the age of 18 killed 142 individuals and wounded 242 others in 2020, a development that elevated from 2015 via 2020 as gun gross sales continued to rise, the Related Press reported.

Collins stated that the kid was interviewed by somebody who focuses on chatting with youngsters. Throughout the interview, the kid allegedly stated that he discovered the gun whereas sitting within the backseat of the automotive and fired whereas taking part in with it.

"[The child] someway received ahold of the gun and started taking part in with it in a playful method, pointed the gun and fired the shot," Collins stated. A bullet struck 22-year-old Daejah Bennett, who was sitting within the passenger seat, within the neck. She was rushed to the College of Chicago Medical Heart the place she was later pronounced lifeless.

Illinois Guns Death Chicago
A father in Illinois has been arrested and can probably be charged with firearm-related offenses after his 3-year-old youngster is believed to have discovered the daddy's gun and shot his mom of their automotive Saturday. Above, an image taken on February 2, 2020, reveals a flashing blue gentle of a police automotive in Datteln, Germany.Ina Fassbender/AFP through Getty Photos

Investigators have concluded that the person arrested Monday legally owned the gun, however didn't have the hid carry allow required by legislation to own the gun within the automotive.

Police are working with the state legal professional's workplace in Cook dinner County to find out what costs must be filed towards the daddy, Collins stated, including it will probably be firearm-related costs filed Monday night time or Tuesday.

Everytown's #NotAnAccident Index, up to date in December 2021, reported a minimum of 2,070 unintentional shootings from 2015 via 2020, which resulted in 765 deaths and over 1,300 accidents. Gun gross sales additionally surged throughout that interval, rising over 60 p.c in 2020, the primary yr of the pandemic, as racial and political tensions rose.

The advocacy group additionally reported that unintentional taking pictures experiences have been at their highest charges for January via June within the final seven years of Everytown's knowledge, with the variety of youngsters dwelling with firearms of their family as much as 30 million in 2021, a rise from 7 million in 2015.

The group additionally cited a nationwide firearm survey performed in 2021 to estimate that about 4.6 million of these youngsters lived in a house with a minimum of one loaded gun that isn't saved behind a lock.

Replace 03/14/22, 7:00 p.m. ET: This story has been up to date with further data.

Replace 03/14/22, 6:34 p.m. ET: This story was up to date with further data and background.