After toddler is shot, man is charged with leaving loaded gun on bed
VERNON HILLS, Illinois - A suburban man is charged with reckless conduct and endangering the life of a child after a toddler was shot with a gun left on a bed.
Vernon Hills police said officers responded to Plumwood Lane on Friday afternoon to a report of a child accidentally injured by fireworks.
When they got there, they realized the girl, 2, had been shot.
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Police said the loaded, semi-automatic pistol had been left on a bed.
The victim, as well as her 3-year-old and 6-year-old brothers, were being cared for by their aunt, 17, and her boyfriend at the time.
Joseph Hatchett, 19, of Grayslake, is charged with felony reckless conduct and misdemeanor endangering the life of a child. Additional charges are pending.
The girl was flow to Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago. Her injuries are serious but not considered life-threatening.
The other siblings are in the custody of DCFS while the investigation continues.