Boy, 5, Shoots Cousin, 6, While Playing With Gun

A 5-year-old boy accidentally shot his 6-year-old cousin in the hip Tuesday night at a Mid-City apartment and the mother of the wounded boy later was arrested on suspicion of improperly storing the weapon, police said.

The shooting occurred about 6:30 p.m. in the 2600 block of South Normandie Avenue. The mother of the wounded boy, Yolanda White, apparently was asleep while her children were playing with five or six cousins ranging between 2 and 9 years old, police said.

Investigators said the gun apparently went off as the two boys were playing with it. The wounded boy was hospitalized at County-USC Medical Center.