An 11-year-old boy in North Carolina has been charged with manslaughter in the shooting death of an 8-year-old girl that his mother was babysitting, police said.
According to a Facebook post from the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, police responded to a call on July 25 about an “unresponsive juvenile with an apparent gunshot wound.”
“I didn’t know my son brought home a gun from my dad’s house and it fell out of the closet, and it shot the little girl that I’m babysitting, and I need an ambulance now,” the boy’s mother is heard saying in a 911 call, according to WAFB.
The child died two days later at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center in Fayetteville.
The 11-year-old’s mother was babysitting the girl, identified as Jenesis Dockery, WTVD reported. The 11-year-old, who was not named, was charged with manslaughter and two counts of larceny of a firearm. He was detained by the Division of Juvenile Justice on Friday.
The boy allegedly stole two guns from a family member’s safe, according to People.
“This has been a horrible nightmare, [it] still doesn’t feel real,” Jenesis’ father, Fon Dockery, said at a press conference. “It’s hard to put into words how we’re trying to navigate, three weeks later, for something to be done. We wore orange pins on the day we buried our daughter — for gun violence awareness.”
“Because as much as we want justice for our daughter, this is something no parent should ever have to do. We thank the community, and we ask that you continue to support and continue to reach out until the full hand of the law is exacted with justice for our Jenesis,” Dockery said.
A GoFundMe page was set up for the family.
