02-02-2018, 05:52 PM
^ Follow-up -- Accidental Shooting?
The semi-automatic handgun that fired accidentally inside a Los Angeles middle school classroom came from a 12-year-old girl's backpack and the single bullet tore through the wrist of another girl before striking a boy's head, police said Friday.
Los Angeles Police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said detectives are trying to figure out where the girl got the gun, which was unregistered, and why she brought it to school. It wasn't clear what made it fire.
The girl, who was booked on a charge of negligent discharge of a firearm after Thursday's shooting, has retained an attorney and isn't answering questions, Rubenstein said.
Jordan Valenzuela, a 12-year-old classmate of the girl's, told The Associated Press he was in the room next door when the gun went off and talked to her minutes later.
"She was crying," Jordan said. "She was like, 'I didn't mean to. I had the gun in my backpack and I didn't know it was loaded and my backpack fell and the gun went off.'"
Jordan said he saw a hole in the backpack, which the girl was holding, when she asked him to hide the gun for her. "I said 'No,'" he said. "Then I moved away from her because I was a little bit scared."
(continued)
The semi-automatic handgun that fired accidentally inside a Los Angeles middle school classroom came from a 12-year-old girl's backpack and the single bullet tore through the wrist of another girl before striking a boy's head, police said Friday.
Los Angeles Police spokesman Josh Rubenstein said detectives are trying to figure out where the girl got the gun, which was unregistered, and why she brought it to school. It wasn't clear what made it fire.
The girl, who was booked on a charge of negligent discharge of a firearm after Thursday's shooting, has retained an attorney and isn't answering questions, Rubenstein said.
Jordan Valenzuela, a 12-year-old classmate of the girl's, told The Associated Press he was in the room next door when the gun went off and talked to her minutes later.
"She was crying," Jordan said. "She was like, 'I didn't mean to. I had the gun in my backpack and I didn't know it was loaded and my backpack fell and the gun went off.'"
Jordan said he saw a hole in the backpack, which the girl was holding, when she asked him to hide the gun for her. "I said 'No,'" he said. "Then I moved away from her because I was a little bit scared."
(continued)