01-05-2014, 01:59 PM
Family starts new year with a bang - 2 year old shot
A man was arrested in Camden, N.J., after police said he accidentally shot his 2-year-old son on New Years Eve.
Sergio Rivera, 38, was reportedly driving at approximately 11 p.m. Tuesday when he attempted to conceal a handgun in the car's center console and accidentally fired the weapon, shooting his son in the left arm and left leg.
The boy is recovering at an area hospital and is expected to live. Police said the boy's mother and grandmother were in the car when the shooting occurred.
Rivera drove to the hospital after the shooting, but was uncooperative with investigators. He was arrested on charges including endangering the welfare of a child, possession of a weapon, and aggravated assault.
Police recovered the gun and found Rivera in possession of Percocet pills. He is being held on $185,000 bail, according to officials.
“Our prayers are with this child as he recovers,” Camden Police Chief J. Scott Thomson said in a statement. “Regardless of whether the shooting was intentional or accidental, it’s the culture of violence and the illegal possessing of firearms that lies at the heart of our greatest challenge in reducing gun crime.”
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I hope the toddler pulls through; Rivera is an irresponsible gun owner and I'm glad he's being held and charged. His whole damned family was in the car and he's fucking around with a loaded weapon while driving. What a dipshit.
However, I don't agree with Chief Thompson's statement that this particular case highlights how the culture of violence and illegal possession is the greatest challenge in reducing gun crime. Doesn't even make sense to me. This wasn't an intentional act of violence, nor would it likely have mattered if the gun was owned legally or illegally in this case; struck me as an odd statement.
This is a crime of negligence, based on the details released. IMO.
A man was arrested in Camden, N.J., after police said he accidentally shot his 2-year-old son on New Years Eve.
Sergio Rivera, 38, was reportedly driving at approximately 11 p.m. Tuesday when he attempted to conceal a handgun in the car's center console and accidentally fired the weapon, shooting his son in the left arm and left leg.
The boy is recovering at an area hospital and is expected to live. Police said the boy's mother and grandmother were in the car when the shooting occurred.
Rivera drove to the hospital after the shooting, but was uncooperative with investigators. He was arrested on charges including endangering the welfare of a child, possession of a weapon, and aggravated assault.
Police recovered the gun and found Rivera in possession of Percocet pills. He is being held on $185,000 bail, according to officials.
“Our prayers are with this child as he recovers,” Camden Police Chief J. Scott Thomson said in a statement. “Regardless of whether the shooting was intentional or accidental, it’s the culture of violence and the illegal possessing of firearms that lies at the heart of our greatest challenge in reducing gun crime.”
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I hope the toddler pulls through; Rivera is an irresponsible gun owner and I'm glad he's being held and charged. His whole damned family was in the car and he's fucking around with a loaded weapon while driving. What a dipshit.
However, I don't agree with Chief Thompson's statement that this particular case highlights how the culture of violence and illegal possession is the greatest challenge in reducing gun crime. Doesn't even make sense to me. This wasn't an intentional act of violence, nor would it likely have mattered if the gun was owned legally or illegally in this case; struck me as an odd statement.
This is a crime of negligence, based on the details released. IMO.