Boy Shoots 2-Year-Old Sister in Southern Kentucky
A five-year-old boy in the US state of Kentucky has shot and killed his two-year-old sister while playing with a rifle he received as a present.
The shooting took place around 1pm (3am AEST) at a Cumberland County home, the Lexington Herald-Leader reports.
Coroner Gary White has identified the victim as Caroline Starks.
He said the children’s mother was home at the time of the shooting and the gun was a gift the boy had received last year.
“It’s a Crickett…It’s a little rifle for a kid. …The little boy’s used to shooting the little gun,” Mr White said.
The killing has been ruled accidental with the coroner saying the family kept the weapon in a corner and were unaware the .22 calibre rifle was loaded.
The shooting comes after the US Senate rejected a bill to tighten the sale of firearms in the wake of shooting masscares at Sandy Hook Elementary School and a Colorado cinema.