MORGAN COUNTY, Tenn. — An 8-year-old boy is recovering after accidentally shooting himself in Morgan County, according to District Attorney Russell Johnson.
The incident happened just before 7:30 p.m. on Friday in the Mossy Grove community.
The Morgan County Sheriff's Office learned a child had been shot and wounded at a home on Ray Cross Road.
According to the press release, first responders quickly responded and the boy was airlifted to the hospital.
The release said the mother was at home with the child and a sibling at the time of the incident. The mother said she was with the sibling in the living room and heard a "pop" sound coming from the kitchen. It was later discovered the child was shot with what turned out to be a 9mm handgun.
The father was at work at the time. From what deputies were told, they believe the father placed or kept the loaded handgun in a holster on top of the refrigerator in the kitchen. The mother said that the child used a chair to climb up on the countertops in the kitchen. This time he apparently reached on top of the refrigerator to get the gun and somehow shot himself one time in the upper chest area.
First responders said the child was released from the hospital Saturday with a fractured shoulder but "otherwise, the child is doing well."
Morgan County Sheriff Wayne Potter also reported that DCS had been to the house several times regarding the child and that DCS was immediately notified following the incident.
This is the second shooting of a child with a loaded handgun being kept in the home in DA Johnson’s four-county district in the past few weeks. On Aug. 27, a 4-year-old girl was shot and killed in Rockwood by the girlfriend of the girl’s custodian, Johnson said.