A Georgia woman is charged with murder after her 5-year-old son got hold of a gun and accidentally killed his twin brother, according to authorities.
Lanecia Bennett, 25, is accused of second-degree murder and child cruelty in the death of her 5-year-old son, Jeremiah George Jr. The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m.
Thursday in an apartment in the 4400 block of Pleasant Point Drive in Decatur, where they discovered the victim with a gunshot wound. The boy was rushed to the hospital but died. DeKalb Police Department officers arrested his mother that day.
According to the bond motion filed in DeKalb County Superior Court, the twins were playing in their mother’s bedroom when they discovered a loaded, unsecured gun inside her purse, which was on a bedside table.
According to police, the surviving twin accidentally shot and killed Jeremiah.
According to cops, no other adults were present in the home at the time, except Bennett.
“As investigators continue to piece together the events of this tragic shooting, we want to remind the public that if they have guns, it’s important for owners to do what they can to keep guns out of the hands of children,” Blaine Clark, public information officer for DeKalb police, wrote in a press release. The department also offers free gun safes for some firearms.
Bennett was initially detained in the DeKalb County jail without bond, but her attorneys sought an emergency hearing in Superior Court. On Friday, a judge set her bond at $30,000. She has since posted it.
“Ms. Bennett is grieving this heart-wrenching and unexpected loss of her son,” according to her lawyers. “Her other son needs her during this extremely difficult time. In addition, Ms. Bennett now faces the heartbreaking task of planning her son’s funeral.
After the shooting, local NBC affiliate WXIA spoke with stunned neighbors. Chase Houle said he saw the medics enter the apartment and exit with the boy before performing CPR.
“That could be my child, or anyone’s child. I immediately became emotional because, as I previously stated, I have a three- and four-year-old. “So, yeah, that was very emotional,” he told the outlet.
