Two 13-year-olds are accused of being shot by an 11-year-old boy after an altercation broke out at a youth football practice in central Florida on Monday night, according to the authorities.
After the incident at the Northwest Recreation Complex in Apopka, northwest of Orlando, the child was taken into custody and lodged in jail on a single charge of second-degree attempted murder, according to police.
Mike McKinley, the police chief of Apopka, told reporters, “That’s not good.” We shouldn’t allow 11-year-olds to have access to firearms and believe they can settle a quarrel using one.
According to police, the call for assistance came in at 8:18 p.m., and officers arrived on the site at 8:24 p.m.
Before the argument spilled into the parking lot, the teenage suspect and victims had battled earlier in the evening during practice at the complex’s Field of Fame, according to officials.
According to McKinley, the 11-year-old pulled a gun out of his mother’s car and fired one shot, striking two boys: one in the torso and one in the arm.
Given the crowded environment, McKinley claimed that even worse outcomes might have resulted from the gunshots. The other youngster was discharged, while the other boy remained in the hospital in a stable condition.
The chief remarked, “We all thank God that no one was harmed more severely than they were. The situation “could have been very tragic.”
According to McKinley, the pistol was in a box in the shooter’s mother’s car but was not locked as it should have been, and the suspect’s parent is likely to also be charged for failing to secure the rifle.
According to reports, a surveillance camera caught the incident and photographed the victims fleeing the shooter as soon as he squeezed the trigger.
“As a society, we must consider this. We see young juveniles with access to guns far too frequently in our culture today, and they are increasing younger by the day, McKinley added.
The more troubling aspect is that they think that a gun, that rifle, will solve their problems when in reality it won’t solve anyone’s problems.
The Mid-Florida league of the Youth Football Association said in a statement on Tuesday that Pop Warner officials are working to “better understand the circumstances surrounding the shooting and work to ensure that sufficient measures are in place to protect the program and its members.”
Mid-Florida Pop Warner expressed their sadness at the terrifying incident. “When young children are involved, the scourge of gun violence is even more disturbing.”