Brother Charged With Accidentally Shooting 12-Year-Old Sis
MIAMI (CBS4) – A Miami man was arrested in the accidental shooting of his 12-year-old sister.
According to police, 21-year-old Tyrone David Harris, Jr. was charged Friday with one count of carrying a concealed weapon.
Miami Police told CBS4's Peter D'Oench that Harris will not be charged with any other offenses, such as culpable negligence. Carrying a concealed weapon is a misdemeanor.
In bond court, he told a Judge that he had no money and a public defender was appointed to represent him.
In court, a Miami Police detective said that Harris told him the incident "was an accident. He admitted he found the handgun in the bushes and when he was going to the apartment, it went off by accident." The detective said Harris never meant to harm his sister.
It was revealed in court that Harris was arrested in the past, under a different name, for battery on a police officer, resisting arrest and trespassing. He was given pre-trial release, allowing him to get out of jail Friday night.
The young girl, named Brika, remains hospitalized after being shot in the leg outside of her Miami home Thursday evening, D'Oench reported.
Her mother is with her at bedside at the hospital but declined to give any statement or allow her daughter to speak with CBS4.
Miami police spokesperson Kenia Reyes said they received a 911 call at 6 p.m. from the home on the 400 block of Northwest 6th Street which stated a child had been shot.
Reyes said Brika and Tyrone were arriving home when a gun the brother was carrying accidentally went off, hitting Brika in the leg. The girl's brother stayed on the scene until police arrived. Neighbors said he was very concerned over what happened.
"He was very concerned about his sister. He actually stayed and watched them take her in the ambulance because I think he called everything an accident," said a neighbor.
One of Brika's friends also heard the gunfire.
"We heard something like a gunshot we thought her brother punched a door or something like that. We looked and saw her on the floor and she had blood on her leg," said the victim's friend Ashley Lenard. "She was screaming."
Miami Fire Rescue took Brika to Jackson Memorial Hospital's pediatric unit in stable condition.
Police say they have recovered the gun and are working to determine who is the registered owner.
Authorities say safety should always come first.
"Our message to those people are if you are carrying a weapon, make sure it's in safe mode," said Reyes.
