BELLEVUE, WI (WTAQ) – Just after 6:30 Monday night, deputies from the Brown County Sheriff’s Office responded to Bellin Hospital for a report of a 2-year-old boy with a gunshot wound.
Information led to the discovery that the shooting occurred in the Village of Bellevue.
Officials say the accidental shooting took place in the Bellevue Trailer Park at 1331 Bellevue St.
The child received non-life threatening injuries from the shooting, but narrowly escaped a more grim outcome.
Had the gun been angled a few degrees different, the toddler would have died, according to officials.
The child got a hold of the gun and fired a round into his leg, below the knee, and exited above his knee, according to investigators.
The round grazed the boy’s chest and caused chest bleeding, while it just missed the joint and the child will not have to have knee surgery.
According to Wisconsin Statute 948.55, it is illegal to recklessly leave or store a loaded firearm within the easy reach or easy access of a child, even though the firearm was lawfully purchased and possessed.
The firearm will be examined by the Wisconsin State Crime Lab to determine what force is required to pull the trigger on the firearm and whether the safety features of the firearm are working properly.
Sheriff officials say they will submit findings to the District Attorney’s Office for review as they continue their investigation.
