CRANSTON, R.I. (WHDH) - A four-year-old boy was in critical condition Tuesday afternoon after being shot in Cranston, Rhode Island earlier in the day, police said, and the child’s father has been charged in connection with the shooting.
Police said the boy was shot in the head inside a residential building on Queen Street Tuesday morning. He is in critical condition.
33-year-old Michael Jones is facing several charges. Police said he accidentally shot his son when he was handling a loaded gun. They said Jones was in a second floor bedroom when the gun went off. The bullet traveled through the wall, hitting the boy who was in an adjacent room.
When officers arrived, they said Jones was holding his son. Jones has previously been convicted of a felony assault, so he is barred from owning a weapon.
Police said the boy was taken to Hasbro Children’s Hospital and was expected to undergo surgery.
Investigators were questioning the boy’s father, who is facing charges including felony assault.
Col. Michael Winquist of the Cranston Police Department said Cranston officers were “some of the first ones inside the residence.”
“Any time you see a child that’s injured, especially to this degree, it’s always a difficult situation,” Winquist said. “…We’re praying and hoping the child makes it.”
Winquist continued, saying “Our thoughts are with the family, at this time, and the child.”
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