Two parents have been charged after their four-year-old son shot himself in the head with a gun left lying around at the family’s Pennsylvania home.
Ronnie Lynn was left paralyzed and required a feeding tube after the bullet ricocheted through his skull during the tragic incident on July 6.
The youngster came across the loaded and unsecured weapon underneath a bed at his Rostraver Township home while looking for a paint set, police said.
Laura Steele and Michael Lynn have now been charged with endangering the welfare of children by a parent/guardian and recklessly endangering another person.
Both parents were home at the time of the shooting and heard a ‘pop’ before discovering their bleeding son lying next to a handgun, WTAE reports.
The parents of Ronnie Lynn, four, have been charged after the youngster shot himself in the head with a gun he found laying around his Rostraver Township home
Michael Lynn and Laura Steel face child neglect charges over the tragic accident on July 6
Ronnie was left paralyzed and with damage to his brain and eye after he stumbled across the loaded and unsecured weapon under a bed while looking for a paint set
Steele told cops she had forgotten the gun was under the bed as it had been there for so long.
Ronnie was rushed to UPMC Children’s Hospital in a stable but critical condition and was paralyzed along his right side.
His grandfather Wally Lynn told WTAE the youngster shot himself in the forehead and that the bullet had gone ‘all the way back.’
He only survived thanks to the quick response of EMS workers who managed to get him into surgery within an hour of responding to the call.
In September, his family said he was on the mend and recently had his feeding tube removed and regained sensation in his limbs.
‘His right arm and right leg was paralyzed, and now he’s kicking that foot,’ Ronnie’s grandfather said.
The youngster had also begun to regain his speech as of a few months ago.
However, he still could not walk and required the use of a wheelchair.
Steele told police that the gun had been lying under the bed for so long she had forgotten about it
Ronnie had regained some of the movement in his arm and leg but was still reliant on a wheelchair as of September
‘They’ll put them in a wheelchair, and he has to wear a helmet. So my son, you know, being a good dad, he bought himself a helmet,’ Wally Lynn said. ‘Then they go around for what they call a field trip. He just waves at all the nurses.
The family was hopeful Ronnie would be out by the holidays.
A GoFundMe page for the, ‘strong little independent boy’ indicates he has been left with damage to his brain and his eye. \
His parents ‘have not left his side’ since the incident, according to the fundraiser even though Steele is battling stage four breast cancer.
The page was set up to help cover medical expenses. It has raised $6,735 of its $8,000 goal.
‘Ronnie is a strong little independent boy, only 4 years old. Curious of the world and space around him,’ the fundraiser states.
‘He loves to help his dad and Pap Pap with any work that needs done around the house, even going behind him cutting grass with his own little tykes mower to make sure that no spots were missed.
‘He loves to dance around with his family and cook with his Mimi. He would do all kinds of arts and crafts with his sister and play video games with his brother. Ronnie is a very loved little boy.’
The youngster was saved by the EMS’ quick response which got him onto the operating table within an hour
Police ruled the shooting as accidental but announced the charges on Monday.
‘This was a tragic and unacceptable shooting that ultimately could have and should have been prevented,’ Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli said.
‘There is one simple solution to prevent these types of incidents from happening, and it is to store your firearms in a safe and secure location.
She added that Ronnie, ‘will likely have to live with this painful reminder for the rest of his life.’