Local News in Brief : Boy, 3, Shot Accidentally
A 3-year-old boy was critically wounded Wednesday when a rifle he found while playing at a relative’s home in the Willowbrook area accidentally discharged, authorities said.
Alberto Alcala was visiting his uncle, Francisco Ayala, when he discovered the loaded .22-caliber rifle behind a crib, said Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Roger Hom.
The youngster began dragging the rifle by its barrel when the gun apparently “caught on something beneath the crib,” causing it to discharge, Hom said.
Alberto was struck beneath his left armpit by a single bullet that exited through the center of his chest, the deputy said. The child was in critical but stable condition at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center.
Ayala kept the loaded rifle for protection, Hom said, adding that “it just might be better to keep them unloaded or lock the trigger guard.”
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