9-Year-Old Accidentally Shoots Stepbrother At Chipotle Parking Lot; Boy Recovering

A 7-year-old child had to be rushed to a hospital after his 9-year-old stepbrother accidentally shot him using his stepfather's gun.

The incident happened at the car parking lot outside a Chipotle outlet in Snellville, Atlanta, on Sunday, reported The Atlanta-Constitution Journal.

"9 year old accidentally shot 7 year old with a firearm left in the vehicle while the adult went in to pick up food," Snellville Police said in a Facebook post, adding that the child was conscious and alert when he was transported to the hospital.

It was not clear how the child got hold of the gun or where exactly the weapon was located inside the car. The boys' mother was inside the restaurant ordering food when the shooting happened, WSB-TV reported.

The employees at the Chipotle outlet alerted police when they saw the injured boy. They also tended to the child until help arrived.

"Some kids came in and they were screaming that someone shot him. You could see the visible gunshot wound coming out from his ear. We just stayed here applying pressure to the wound until the paramedics came. The mom was right there. She was the one putting a towel on his wound," Johanna Cervantes, an employee, told WSB-TV.

Though the police did not provide an update about the boy's condition, reports said he is recovering.

It is unclear whether charges will be filed against the stepfather or mother of the children. Their identities were not revealed.

Police are reportedly conducting several interviews in connection with the incident. Officers have advised gun owners to keep their firearms secured, adding that lockboxes for guns are inexpensive.

This is the fifth shooting incident in metro Atlanta this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive database. Three children have died so far. A 6-month-old child was killed in a drive-by shooting last week. The baby was in the backseat of his mother's vehicle when he was shot dead. Two people were arrested in connection with the incident.

Before that, Atlanta police arrested the mother of a 1-year-old who died from a gunshot wound after another child accidentally shot the baby. The woman had reportedly left the gun unsecured in a room when the child picked it up and shot the kid.