The holiday celebrations of one St. Mary family turned to tragedy at their Galina home in the parish on Sunday morning, December 27, when a seven-year-old girl allegedly shot and killed herself with a gun belonging to her father.
Dead is seven-year-old Gabriel Ricketts of Hanover.
The child was visiting her father and his family in Galina, St. Mary for the Christmas holidays. It is alleged that she was playing with the licensed firearm belonging to her father when it went off, hitting her in the face and killing her.
The incident has sent family members and several community members into mourning hours following the Christmas holiday that brought the family together.
Several questions are also being raised as to whether it was negligence on the part of the father that allowed a loaded gun to be acquired by the child.
Police however say they are leaning toward negligence in the case.
DAD WAS ASLEEP
Preliminary reports from the St. Mary police are that at about 8 a.m. on Sunday, the child was at home in Galina, St. Mary with other family members. The father, who is a licensed firearm holder, was asleep in the living room where he had been watching television. The gun had reportedly been put under a cushion and the seven-year-old child managed to gain access to his loaded gun. Police said a round was in the breech. One shot was allegedly fired by the child. It’s reported that the explosion woke the father who then realized that his daughter had a single bullet wound to her face. A call was then made to the police informing them of the incident.
Gabriel was taken to the Port Maria Hospital by a male relative in his car where she was pronounced dead at about 8:20 a.m.
INVESTIGATIONS ONGOING
Head of the St. Mary police, superintendent Stephanie Lindsay explained to The Times that the father of the child was interviewed by the police and has been released. She explained that a file will be prepared and sent to the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) for the police to be guided as to how to proceed.
Superintendent Lindsay also said that the appropriate procedures were followed in carrying out the investigations. The scene was visited Sunday morning by senior officers, scene of crime detectives, ballistic experts from Kingston and a number of statements were collected from persons at the house. There were at least four others in the house including the spouse of the licensed firearm holder.
OCA INTERESTED
The superintendent said observation at the scene of the incident and investigations by the officers was consistent with the father’s account of the incident that it was a fatal shooting.
Once the file is sent to the DPP, the officers will be advised as to how to proceed in the matter.
In the meantime, the office of the Children’s Advocate (OCA) says it has an interest in the matter. The office will be liaising with the police due to the fact that a child was ‘fatally shot’.
The incident has raised several questions as to how parents and guardians should proceed as it relates to the presence of firearms and children in the home.
