A 22-year-old mother fatally shot her 2-year-old son when she found her boyfriend's loaded gun inside her Northern California apartment and unintentionally pulled the trigger in what police called a “preventable” tragedy.
The suspect, Andrew Sanchez, 18, was lying in bed Friday night when the toddler managed to grab an unsecured handgun that had been left in the couple's bedroom and attacked Jessenia Mina's upper body. He was arrested after firing a fatal shot. According to the Fresno Police Department.
Mina, who is also the mother of an 8-month-old daughter, was taken to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno, where she died from her injuries.
“This is a very tragic and very preventable and avoidable event. He left that firearm in an area that was accessible to a 2 1/2-year-old toddler at that location,” said Lt. Paul Cervantes. Ta. He said this at a press conference on Monday.
“The Fresno Police Department is deeply saddened by this terrible tragedy. It is a stark reminder of the importance and importance of storing weapons properly and in a way that does not allow children to obtain them. It has become a thing.”
Police said they were called to the Butterfly Grove Apartments around 5:40 p.m. and found Sanchez trying to take her young mother to the hospital. First responders began life-saving measures before transporting her to a medical center, where she later died.
A 9mm gun was found and seized at the scene, Cervantes said, adding that the gun does not have any external safety features.
Sanchez, who had no criminal record, was immediately taken into custody and charged with possession of a firearm and child endangerment. Both are felonies.
“As you can imagine, that's difficult because you have to wrestle with the idea that a two-and-a-half-year-old child can even be considered strong enough to operate a firearm,” Cervantes said. said.
Jessica Rodriguez, the victim's sister, described Mina as a beautiful soul who was on her way back to cosmetology school. She added that her sister's boyfriend ignored her repeated pleas to remove her murdered mother's firearm from the house.
“She was beautiful and funny, could bring a smile to anyone's face, and everyone who knew her was truly blessed by her presence. Because she ignored her sister's wishes not to have one, she was gone forever. Rodriguez said in a statement to KFSN.
“My nieces and nephews have to live off of the memories and stories of my sister, not her presence. Because of his neglect, we have been forced to live without my sister's lifelong goals and accomplishments. I'll never see it accomplished. My sister didn't deserve this.”
Rodriguez has also started a GoFundMe to raise money to support the family.
Police said Sanchez was booked into the Fresno County Jail and later posted bail.
The investigation is still ongoing.
