A California woman was fatally shot by her 2-year-old toddler, leading to the arrest of her boyfriend, who is accused of improperly storing the gun, Fresno police said this week.
Jessinya Mina, 22, died Friday after police were called to an apartment in the 5200 block of North Fresno Street where she was shot once in the upper body as she lay in bed, Fresno police Lt. Paul Cervantes said at a news conference Tuesday.
Cervantes called the shooting a “tragedy” that was “preventable.”
Jessinya Mina.
“The firearm was stored in a location where the toddler had access to the firearm, and at some point, while handling that particular weapon, the toddler was able to manipulate the trigger,” Cervantes said.
Mina’s boyfriend, Andrew Sanchez, 18, spoke to investigators and said he was responsible for the 2.5-year-old toddler’s discovery of the 9mm gun. Police said Mina had another child, an eight-month-old baby.
Sánchez was booked into jail on charges of child endangerment and criminal concealment of a firearm, both felonies, police said in a statement.
Sanchez, who has no criminal record and tried to take his injured girlfriend to the hospital in a car, has since been released from jail, Cervantes said.
It was not immediately clear Wednesday whether Sánchez had retained an attorney.
The investigation remains ongoing, Cervantes said, and police are consulting with prosecutors about filing appropriate charges.
Prosecutors could not immediately be reached for an update on the case Wednesday afternoon.
The incident, Cervantes said, is a stark reminder for gun owners to be diligent about where they store their weapons.
“The Fresno Police Department is deeply saddened by these types of tragedies that are…devastating and certainly serve as a stark reminder of the meaning and importance of storing your gun properly and in a way that children cannot access it have,” he said.
Mina’s relatives were not immediately available for comment.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
