3-year-old North Carolina girl who accidentally shot herself on Christmas dies – USA TODAY
ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A 3-year-old North Carolina girl who accidentally shot herself on Christmas day has died.
Aylee Gordon succumbed to her injuries at a local hospital on Dec. 28, Henderson County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Johnny Duncan wrote in a press release.
Gordon was playing with her new bicycle in the city of Edneyville in southwest North Carolina around 2 p.m. on Dec. 25 when she picked up a 9 mm pistol and accidentally shot herself in the head, a 911 call recording after the incident revealed.
She was airlifted to a nearby Mission Hospital where she received emergency surgery and made it through the night “heavily sedated,” according to a GoFundMe page set up by family friend Denise Hunter.
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In 2021, a total of 1,049 children ages 11 and under have been injured or killed due to gun violence, the most instances in any of the past eight years, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation and the Henderson County District Attorney’s Office are conducting an investigation into the incident.
According to the 911 call, someone visiting the family for Christmas left the loaded gun in the backseat of a truck. No criminal charges have been filed.
“Any charges in this case will be at the discretion of the NCSBI and the District Attorney’s office once the investigation has been completed and submitted to the District Attorney Andrew Murray for review,” Duncan wrote in the release.
Contributing: Jordan Mendoza, USA TODAY
Follow Shelby Harris on Twitter: @_shelbyharris.
