Michigan toddler dies after shooting unsecured firearm: Police

A 2-year-old child in Michigan died from an accidental shooting Sunday evening after accessing an unsecured firearm, authorities said.

Police initially responded to the report of a shooting at 6 p.m. in the Rolling Oaks subdivision of Howell, Michigan, according to a statement from the Howell Police Department.

“It was reported that a 2.5-year-old child had gained access to an unsecured firearm that resulted in an accidental shooting,” the release noted.

The victim was transported to a local hospital, where the child was pronounced dead.

The Howell Police Department has not released additional details about the incident, and the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office, which also responded to the incident, declined to provide information as well.

Incidents involving children accessing unsecured firearms are common, with nearly one child shooting themselves or someone else using an unsecured firearm every day, according to gun-violence prevention nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety.

Between 2015 and 2022, at least 895 children under the age of 5 and preschoolers were able to shoot themselves or someone else, wounding or killing at least 933 children, according to Everytown.

The Howell shooting also comes less than two months after Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed bills requiring safe storage requirements for firearms.

“Universal background checks and safe storage are long-overdue steps we are proud to take today that will save lives by keeping guns out of the hands of criminals and domestic abusers and children in the home,” Whitmer said at the time of the bill signing.