Prosecutors say a 10-year-old Milwaukee boy fatally shot his mom in the face after she refused to purchase him a virtual reality headset, then logged onto her Amazon account and ordered it the following day.
The youngster has been charged as an adult with first-degree reckless murder and is being kept in a juvenile detention center due of his age.
He originally told officers that he took the revolver from his mother’s bedroom at 7 a.m. Nov. 21 and went downstairs to wash laundry.
When the firearm went off, the child stated he was spinning it around his finger. He informed his 26-year-old sister, who dialed 911.
However, once his family questioned his tale, he revealed to cops that he purposely aimed the pistol at his mom, as per a complaint reported by the site.
According to the boy’s aunt, when she picked him up the day after the incident, he grabbed a set of home keys that included a key to the gun’s container.
When she questioned him about the shooting, he stated he pointed the gun at his mother, who said, “Why do you have that? Put it down, the complaint says.
According to records, the day after reportedly shooting his mother in the face, he logged into her Amazon account and bought an Oculus Virtual Reality headset – as well as assaulting his 7-year-old cousin.
He sincerely apologize for what occurred. According to the aunt, the youngster said, He is sorry for killing his mom, without emotion or sympathy.
Relatives notified officials about his history of odd conduct, which included swinging his pet by its tail when he was four years old.
According to the family, he triggered an explosion six months ago when he set fire to a balloon holding a volatile substance.
They stated that the youngster informed them he heard voices in his head.
According to the complaint, when officers interrogated the youngster again, he informed them he pointed the pistol at his mother and attempted to shoot a wall to “scare her,” instead striking her when she moved in front of him.
He told detectives he retrieved the semi-automatic Glock 43 from the lock box since his mother woke him up at 6 a.m. rather than 6:30 a.m. — and she wouldn’t allow him to make an Amazon order.
The child made his first appearance in Milwaukee County Court on Friday, when a $50,000 cash bail was imposed.
On December 7, he is set to appear in the Milwaukee Youth and Family Justice Center.
Angela Cunningham, the boy’s lawyer, said she was still collecting facts about the case.
This is a true family disaster. She does not believe anyone would dispute or reject that, she remarked.
The adult system is completely unprepared to meet the requirements of a 10-year-old child.
Certain heinous offenses, such as first-degree intentional homicide, first-degree reckless homicide, and attempted first-degree intentional homicide, allow minors as early as 10 to be tried as adults under state law.
Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson told reporters that anytime there is violence in Milwaukee, whether done by someone who is 10 years old or much older than that, it causes him pause. He continued that he didn’t wish to see anyone injured or killed in the city.
