Louisiana boy, 4, shot dead inside car while adults smoked marijuana in front seat
A four-year-old boy was fatally shot on Saturday night on January 29 inside a car in Louisiana while two adults smoked marijuana in the front seats. The child was rushed to a local hospital for treatment but he succumbed to his injuries. "As the adults were smoking marijuana in the front seat, a shot was fired inside the vehicle that struck the victim, causing the fatal injury,” said the statement released by Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office.
The shooting happened at around 10.45 pm Saturday on Stillwell Lane, Westwego, about 12 miles from downtown New Orleans when the boy was sitting in the back seat with his younger sibling in a parked car, while the two adults sat in the front.
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The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office believes that the child had been injured "not by a hostile act but by a negligent one." However, the authorities do not believe that the wound was self-inflicted and are still investigating who fired the gun.
Child killed in unincorporated Westwego, investigation underway—full release below pic.twitter.com/uaeOPW43DU
— JP Sheriff's Office (@JeffParishSO) January 30, 2022
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office has not made any arrests in the case, as of Sunday night on January 30. "Our initial investigation has led our investigators to believe that the child was injured not by a hostile act, but by a negligent one," Rivarde said in a statement. "Our investigators are still trying to determine who fired the shot. It is not believed to be self-inflicted." JPSO explained. The sheriff’s office stressed the need for responsible gun ownership saying that "firearms should never be left unattended in vehicles or in the reach of children."