Yet another tragedy involving a firearm occurred on Friday in the United States. The accident occurred in Fresno (California), in the apartment that Jessinya Mina, 22, occupied with her 2 1/2-year-old son, her 8-month-old daughter, and Andrew Sanchez, her 18-year-old boyfriend. . According to local police, the boy got his hands on a 9mm pistol which was loaded. “At one point, the child was able to manipulate the trigger, and Mina was shot while she was lying in bed,” said Lt. Paul Cervantes.
The young mother was shot in the chest, according to ABC 30. Her companion and “other roommates” tried to resuscitate her, set off for the hospital and called the emergency services on the route. “They were instructed to stay put and wait for police and firefighters,” the lieutenant said. Despite the intervention of emergency services, Jessinya was pronounced dead at the hospital.
During his interrogation, Andrew Sanchez confirmed that he was responsible for leaving his gun where his friend’s son could reach it. The young man was arrested and charged with child endangerment and “criminal storage of a firearm.” The individual’s criminal record being clean, he was released on bail, but could see the charges against him increase.
“This tragedy is a brutal reminder of the importance of storing your weapon correctly, so that children do not have access to it,” said Lieutenant Cervantes. According to her sister, Jessinya was about to resume her cosmetology studies. “My niece and nephew will have to live with the memories and stories of my sister rather than with her presence,” said Jessica Rodriguez.
