Eight-year-old Boy Finds Gun Under Mom’s Car Seat, Shoots and Kills Himself

In Lehi, Utah, an eight-year-old boy found a loaded gun under the driver’s seat while left alone in a parked vehicle and shot himself in the head. He died in the hospital the next morning.

According to a later report, the boy has been identified as Sergeant “Sargy” Rosales, who was autistic. “We can’t make sense of it right now. It’s sudden and my brother was having lunch with his son the day prior,” said the boy’s uncle. “To see a casket with my nephew, it’s just not right,” he added. Sargy’s father’s family is supporting a safe storage law for Utah.

One of the witnesses tried to help the boy’s frantic mother as she described the shooting. She said to him, “[h]e shot himself. He shot himself. He shot himself…He found the gun under my seat and pulled the trigger.” And a police sergeant said it shows just how important it is that children don’t have easy access to guns. “It’s super tragic. We hate responding to these types of things,” he said.

Source:

Carter Williams, “8-year-old Boy Dies After Accidental Shooting in Lehi Parking Lot,” ksl.com (September 3, 2024).

Emily Tencer, “Family of Utah County Child Who Died from Self-inflicted Shooting Calling for Change,” Fox13Now.com (September 13, 2024).