4-Year-Old Shoots Himself To Death As Mom Played Cards, Drank And Smoked Pot

In a tragic incident, a four-year-old child from North Carolina accidentally shot himself to death after finding a gun under a couch cushion at his home. The incident happened around 10 p.m. Sunday, High Point Police Department sources said.

Several adults, including the child's mother, were at home during the incident. According to the officers, they were having dinner, playing cards, drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana while the child was left unsupervised, reported WXII 12.

Though the boy was rushed to the nearest medical facility, he succumbed to his head injuries at High Point Regional Hospital.

On arrival, officers found the boy lying on the living room floor. A release from the officers said the child wandered off to the living room, where he found the gun under the couch cushion.

The adults came to know about the incident only after they heard a gunshot.

The detectives found two additional firearms, along with multiple firearm accessories and ammunition from the residence. They also recovered marijuana and cocaine.

The detectives interviewed all adult members who were at the home when the shooting happened. Following this, they arrested house owner Cindy V. Gibson-Harris and the child's mother, Jasmine Fagan.

Gibson-Harris faces charges, including felony possession of cocaine and maintaining a dwelling for the use of controlled substances. She was placed inside the Guilford County Jail in High Point under a $25,000 secured bond. Fagan faces charges of felony child abuse. She has been confined in the High Point jail under a $50,000 secured bond.

In a similar incident, a 10-year-old boy in Philadelphia died after he accidentally shot himself in the chest while playing with his younger sister. The children were alone in the house at the time. The boy, whose identity was not revealed, was home alone with his 8-year-old sister when he discovered the gun. The younger girl, on seeing her brother shot himself, went to a neighbor's house to call for help. "Supposedly there was a gun inside a cabinet that the children located and, at some point, the child discharged the weapon into his own head," Philadelphia Police Capt. Lee Strollo said.