A seven-year-old boy has been shot after a gun accidentally went off in an elementary school classroom in Maryland.
The second grader suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound after he took a handgun to school with him, according to police.
Freetown Elementary School in Glen Burnie, Maryland, went into lockdown after the firearm went off yesterday at about 8.25am (February 4). The boy was taken to hospital for treatment for his injuries, which are not believed to be life-threatening.
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A statement from Anne Arundel County Police said that officers responded to reports of the shooting at the school, but that a teacher had secured the weapon and given first aid to the student.Police said that there were other students in the classroom when the gun went off, but that none of them were injured.
Police Chief Amal Awad told CBS News: “None of us can imagine the terror or the fear that students experienced here this morning, and the teacher.
“We are very grateful that the teacher was very responsive in addressing that child’s injuries and making sure first responders were notified.”
Detectives are now investigating how the incident occurred and how the gun came to be fired in the classroom. It is thought that the boy got the gun from his home, and authorities stressed the importance of free gun locks available.Awad added: « How did a seven-year-old baby get ahold of a firearm and make it all the way to school? This isn’t on the school.”
« How did a seven-year-old child gain access to a firearm and discharge it?”
County Executive Steuart Pittman said in a statement to CBS: « Thankfully, no other individuals were injured. Still, we have students, parents, teachers, and school faculty who have been left traumatized. A gun in one of our schools is our worst nightmare, and we are all grateful this did not end worse.”
According to the Everytown For Gun Safety Support Fund’s Not An Accident Index, there have been 26 accidental shootings by children in 2026. The index said that the shootings have resulted in nine deaths and 17 injuries in the United States this year.
2023 was reportedly the worst year on record for unintentional shootings by children, surpassing 400 incidents for the first time since Everytown started tracking in 2015.
Everytown said on its website: “One of the most effective ways to prevent these shootings is to ensure all guns are stored securely in homes, cars, and elsewhere.
“The gold standard for secure gun storage is to keep all guns unloaded, locked up, and separate from ammunition.”
A doctor who witnessed the fatal shooting of anti-ICE protestor Alex Pretti in Minneapolis has claimed federal agents ‘counted his bullet wounds’ instead of administering first aid.
Alex Pretti was fatally shot on Saturday (24 January) in Minneapolis amid continued protests of ICE agents and the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claim federal immigration agents fired shots in a move of self defence, adding that the protestor was in possession of a handgun at the time.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said that the ICU nurse was believed to be a lawful gun owner, with a permit to carry.
However, there is no evidence that Pretti had any intent on harming federal officers when he took to the streets of Minneapolis this weekend – something his family have said themselves.And now, a witness who was there at the scene has described exactly what they saw.
The witness, described only as a physician, wrote in court documents that they didn’t see the 37-year-old ever brandish a weapon at agents.
The witness statement, which has been filed in the federal court, contradicts the communications being said by the DHS.
« I saw him yelling at the ICE agents, but I did not see him attack the agents or brandish a weapon of any kind, » the witness said of Pretti.
« Suddenly, an ICE agent shoved him to the ground. My view of the altercation was partially obstructed, but after a few seconds, I saw at least four ICE agents point guns at the man. I then saw the agents shoot the man at least six or seven times. »
The witness then said they attempted to treat Pretti’s injuries, without the help of the agents, who were instead
« I was confused as to why the victim was on his side, because that is not standard practice, » the health expert added.
« Checking for a pulse and administering CPR is standard practice. Instead of doing either of those things, the ICE agents appeared to be counting his bullet wounds. »
UNILAD has reached out to the DHS for comment.
This comes after Pretti’s family pleaded for others to ‘help get the truth out about our son’, amid claims by Border Control that Pretti was trying to ‘massacre law enforcement’.
« He cared about people deeply and he was very upset with what was happening in Minneapolis and throughout the United States with ICE, as millions of other people are upset, » Michael Pretti, his father, said of his son.
Footage showing the moments before anti-ICE protestor Alex Pretti was fatally shot by a federal officer has disclosed new details surrounding the shocking incident.
The ICU nurse was fatally shot in the middle of the street on Saturday (24 January) in Minneapolis amid protests following the death of Renee Good earlier this month.
Good, a mom-of-three, was also fatally shot by a federal immigration officer as anti-ICE protests were being held amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
In the case of Pretti, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claim federal immigration agents fired shots in a move of self defence, stating that he was in possession of a handgun at the time.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara has since said that Pretti was believed to be a lawful gun owner, with a permit to carry.Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told the BBC: « The officers attempted to disarm the suspect but the armed suspect violently resisted. Fearing for his life and the lives and safety of fellow officers, an agent fired defensive shots.
« Medics on scene immediately delivered medical aid to the subject but was pronounced dead at the scene. »
Video footage has since challenged this narrative, however, with there being no obvious evidence that Pretti had any intent on harming ICE officers when he took to the streets of Minneapolis on Saturday.
One video angle saw Pretti with a phone in his hand – instead of a gun as it has been suggested by the DHS – being pushed to the sidewalk by an ICE agent, while another angle saw the ICU nurse standing in the road trying to direct traffic.
One agent can then be seen pushing a woman into a pile of snow, which lead to Pretti going to offer his help.
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The agent is then seen pepper-spraying Pretti in the face, and it’s not until he attempts to help the unidentified woman again when several more agents come over and push him to the ground.
Other video angles saw agents beating the man, with one clip appearing to see one remove a firearm from the lower half of Pretti’s body, before the first shots could be heard after that.
CBS Minnesota reports that at least ten shots could be heard.
Border Patrol official Gregory Bovino has since claimed that Pretti was trying to ‘massacre law enforcement’, though the man’s family have urged others to ‘help get the truth out about our son’.
They said: « The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. »Pretti’s father, Michael Pretti, described his son as a man who ‘cared deeply’ about other people.
« He cared about people deeply and he was very upset with what was happening in Minneapolis and throughout the United States with ICE, as millions of other people are upset, » Michael said.
« He thought it was terrible, you know, kidnapping children, just grabbing people off the street.
« He cared about those people, and he knew it was wrong, so he did participate in protests.”
