Walzville Jungle
2024-09-15 20:50:12 UTC
A St. Paul man is facing criminal charges after his 13-year-old niece allegedly shot his 11-year-old son in the face as the children played with guns inside his apartment Friday night, according to prosecutors.
The shooting happened just before 9 p.m. Friday on the third floor of an apartment building at 846 block of Pierce Butler Route, and left the boy with life-threatening injuries.
The 13-year-old girl who is the suspect in the case was later arrested at her home, according to police.
Prosecutors in Ramsey County on Monday afternoon charged Martinez Castillo Lloyd, 34, with one count illegal possession of a firearm and improper storage of a firearm in connection with the incident.
The Ramsey County Attorney's Office confirmed police have also presented an investigation regarding the involvement of a child in the incident, but data privacy laws prohibit the release of further information.
According to the criminal complaint against Lloyd, officers arrived to a chaotic scene and discovered the injured boy laying at the top of the stairs inside the apartment building with a gunshot wound to his face.
He was rushed to Regions Hospital, where he underwent surgery and remains in critical condition.
Several children at the scene identified a girl who they said picked up a gun and was playing with it before she shot the boy in the head and fled the scene.
Police located the girl at her home and took her into custody. She allegedly said: "I accidentally shot somebody" and "I didn't know the gun was loaded," charges state.
Children at the scene told police Lloyd is the father of two kids who do not live with Lloyd, but visit frequently.
Lloyd's children and a group of five other children, ranging in age from 10 to 13, all arrived at the apartment around 8:20 p.m. that night, charges state.
When Lloyd left to go to the store, his son and niece allegedly went into Lloyd's bedroom and retrieved guns, which charges allege were kept in an unlocked drawer in the closet that the children can "easily reach."
The two children said they'd played with the guns about a dozen times previously, generally when Lloyd is not around, the complaint details. They also said the weapons are usually unloaded.
According to the children, Lloyd has seen them with the guns on previous occasions and told them to the put them away.
The 13-year-old girl told police she last played with the guns the previous weekend.
"She assumed that the firearms were unloaded as they usually were, and [Lloyd's] son was playing with the .9mm while she was playing with the revolver," the complaint details.
The girl told police she did not know how to open the revolver to check if it was loaded.
"As the suspect was waving and playing with the revolver it went off, striking the victim in the face, and he fell down in the bedroom," the complaint reads. "The suspect dropped the revolver in the living room and fled the apartment."
The other children carried the injured boy to the kitchen to give him some water and then started to try to walk him outside the apartment, at which point he collapsed and police arrived, charges state.
In an interview with investigators, Lloyd, who was previously convicted for 3rd-degree sale of a controlled substance, admitted to owning two firearms and said he usually took the bullets out, according to charges.
He also allegedly admitted he has seen the kids playing with the guns, which he claimed he does not use but keeps for protection.
Lloyd said he left the children unsupervised when he went to the store and he saw police in the area when he returned home.
Lloyd is scheduled to make his first appearance in Ramsey County District Court on Tuesday morning.
In a news release, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi urged gun owners to explore resources available through the Ramsey County Gun Safety Initiative.
"This tragedy is a painful reminder of the need to safely and securely store guns out of the reach of children," he said.
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/st-paul-man-charged-after-niece-shoots-his-11-year-old-son-in-the-face
The shooting happened just before 9 p.m. Friday on the third floor of an apartment building at 846 block of Pierce Butler Route, and left the boy with life-threatening injuries.
The 13-year-old girl who is the suspect in the case was later arrested at her home, according to police.
Prosecutors in Ramsey County on Monday afternoon charged Martinez Castillo Lloyd, 34, with one count illegal possession of a firearm and improper storage of a firearm in connection with the incident.
The Ramsey County Attorney's Office confirmed police have also presented an investigation regarding the involvement of a child in the incident, but data privacy laws prohibit the release of further information.
According to the criminal complaint against Lloyd, officers arrived to a chaotic scene and discovered the injured boy laying at the top of the stairs inside the apartment building with a gunshot wound to his face.
He was rushed to Regions Hospital, where he underwent surgery and remains in critical condition.
Several children at the scene identified a girl who they said picked up a gun and was playing with it before she shot the boy in the head and fled the scene.
Police located the girl at her home and took her into custody. She allegedly said: "I accidentally shot somebody" and "I didn't know the gun was loaded," charges state.
Children at the scene told police Lloyd is the father of two kids who do not live with Lloyd, but visit frequently.
Lloyd's children and a group of five other children, ranging in age from 10 to 13, all arrived at the apartment around 8:20 p.m. that night, charges state.
When Lloyd left to go to the store, his son and niece allegedly went into Lloyd's bedroom and retrieved guns, which charges allege were kept in an unlocked drawer in the closet that the children can "easily reach."
The two children said they'd played with the guns about a dozen times previously, generally when Lloyd is not around, the complaint details. They also said the weapons are usually unloaded.
According to the children, Lloyd has seen them with the guns on previous occasions and told them to the put them away.
The 13-year-old girl told police she last played with the guns the previous weekend.
"She assumed that the firearms were unloaded as they usually were, and [Lloyd's] son was playing with the .9mm while she was playing with the revolver," the complaint details.
The girl told police she did not know how to open the revolver to check if it was loaded.
"As the suspect was waving and playing with the revolver it went off, striking the victim in the face, and he fell down in the bedroom," the complaint reads. "The suspect dropped the revolver in the living room and fled the apartment."
The other children carried the injured boy to the kitchen to give him some water and then started to try to walk him outside the apartment, at which point he collapsed and police arrived, charges state.
In an interview with investigators, Lloyd, who was previously convicted for 3rd-degree sale of a controlled substance, admitted to owning two firearms and said he usually took the bullets out, according to charges.
He also allegedly admitted he has seen the kids playing with the guns, which he claimed he does not use but keeps for protection.
Lloyd said he left the children unsupervised when he went to the store and he saw police in the area when he returned home.
Lloyd is scheduled to make his first appearance in Ramsey County District Court on Tuesday morning.
In a news release, Ramsey County Attorney John Choi urged gun owners to explore resources available through the Ramsey County Gun Safety Initiative.
"This tragedy is a painful reminder of the need to safely and securely store guns out of the reach of children," he said.
https://bringmethenews.com/minnesota-news/st-paul-man-charged-after-niece-shoots-his-11-year-old-son-in-the-face