Fresno girl hospitalized after 7-year-old brother accidentally shoots her with pellet rifle
A 5-year-old girl was hospitalized Monday after her 7-year-old brother accidentally shot her with a pellet rifle while the siblings were playing outside their Fresno home, authorities said.
Authorities responded to the 1200 block of South Bryan Avenue about noon after the boy had gotten hold of the pellet rifle and accidentally fired it, striking his sister in the upper body, according to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office.
The boy immediately told his parents, who called for help.
The girl underwent surgery at a hospital to remove the pellet. Authorities said she was in serious but stable condition.
No one has been arrested. California law does not require pellet guns to be locked up “since they are not considered to be real firearms,” the Sheriff’s Office said. But authorities suggested that people treat replica guns as though they are real “for the safety of everyone.”
“Do not point them at anyone and do not leave them loaded in unsecured areas,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com
Twitter: @AleneTchek
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