Woman accidentally shot by 6-year-old-granddaughter while driving in North Port

The North Port Police Department is investigating a Thursday afternoon incident in which a 6-year-old girl accidentally shot her grandmother from the backseat of a moving vehicle.

According to NPPD, officers were called to the 4200 block of Tollefson Avenue just before 3 p.m. for a reported accidental discharge of a firearm in a moving vehicle. A 57-year-old woman said that her granddaughter got ahold of a firearm in the vehicle’s backseat and accidentally fired a shot through the driver seat, striking the woman in the lower back. The weapon was in a holster at first, tucked in the back pocket of the driver seat beneath a seat cover.

The grandmother was able to drive home and receive assistance. After calling 911, she was airlifted to Sarasota Memorial Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Detectives began an investigation, and the child was interviewed at the Child Protection Center in North Port. The explanations corroborate an accidental discharge.

“This is an unfortunate example of the importance of gun safety. Please take appropriate measures to make sure children cannot access firearms. This could have been much worse, not only for the grandmother, but for the child. Thankfully, it appears that everyone is going to be okay,” said North Port Police Chief Todd Garrison in a press release.

This is an ongoing investigation.