A two-year-old boy has tragically passed away after accidentally shooting himself in the head in a Walmart parking lot while his parents were shopping for fireworks.
According to WALB, Nakyzi Odums’ parents had left him unattended in their vehicle on the afternoon before the Fourth of July while they went to buy fireworks from a nearby stand.
Witnesses reported hearing a gunshot, prompting his parents to rush back to their car where they found him with a chest wound.
The toddler was immediately taken to a hospital in Douglas, Georgia, and later transferred to a trauma center in another state.
On Saturday, July 6, the Douglas Police Department announced on Facebook that they “regret to inform the community that the young child who suffered an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound on July 3, 2024, has sadly passed away this afternoon” at the trauma center in Jacksonville, Florida.
“Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident,” the police department wrote. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time.”
“He was definitely the light and love for his parents Sam Odums and Laileighauna Parks,” his grandmother Candi Brinson wrote. “He smiled brightly, wholeheartedly, loved unconditionally.”
It was not immediately known if the parents would face any charges in connection with the fatal shooting. There were no indications they had been arrested.
Douglas Police Chief Brannen Pruette told The Independent: “You’re allowed to have a gun in the car, but when there’s a child involved, you need to make sure that the gun is secure so that the child doesn’t have access to it.”
