MIDLAND — A 16-year-old boy is hospitalized in the West Texas city of Midland after his 2-year-old cousin shot him in the chest.
Midland police Sgt. David Garcia says the teen was visiting his cousin and his wife at a Midland apartment complex about 8:30 p.m. Tuesday when the couple's toddler son picked up a loaded handgun and fired.
Garcia says detectives are trying to establish to whom the gun belongs and why it was within the tot's reach. But the spokesman says a toy gun was sitting beneath a Christmas tree and that the toddler "had obviously been playing with the toy gun that looks like a real gun." He added, "It's tough for a 2-year-old to distinguish the difference."
Garcia says the teen underwent surgery and is out of danger. No names are being disclosed.
