5-year-old’s shooting in South L.A. home prompts abuse investigation

The 5-year-old girl who was shot in her South Los Angeles home Wednesday evening is under investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department’s Abused Child Unit, authorities said Thursday.

The Los Angeles Fire Department responded about 5:30 p.m. to treat a small child suffering from a gunshot wound, spokeswoman Margaret Stewart said. The shooting occurred near 41st Place and Woodlawn Avenue.

The child, who was taken in critical condition to the L.A. County-USC Medical Center, was moved from the emergency room to the intensive care unit later that night, KABC-TV Channel 7 reported.

The child’s siblings were in the home when officers arrived, but it is unclear whether they were there at the time of the shooting, police told the station.

“There’s other family members that were in the house, and at this point, we just don’t know what happened in here,” Lt. Raul Jovel with the LAPD told KTLA-TV Channel 5. “We don’t know if it’s a criminal act or negligence or an accident.”

Jovel said one of the girl’s siblings is over 18 and two are minors.

Family members are being questioned, and special detectives from the juvenile division will also interview the children who were home, KTLA reported.

Neighbors told ABC 7 that the girl’s parents were at work when the shooting occurred. It was not immediately clear who fired the shot or who owns the gun, but investigators say the weapon was found inside the house.

“Any weapons in the law shall be secured out of access for children,” Jovel said. “That’s a factor that’ll be closely examined here.”

Additional details weren’t immediately available.

Times staff writer Jaclyn Cosgrove contributed to this report.