3-year-old shoots self with grandfather's gun in N. Harris County

First responders scrambled Sunday to save the life of a 3-year-old boy who apparently shot himself with his grandfather's handgun in Spring.

The boy was rushed by Life Flight helicopter to Memorial Hermann Hospital, where his condition was unknown.

The incident, in the 19400 block of Puget Lane, immediately sparked concern about firearms safety in homes.

"The importance of gun safety and child locks always becomes magnified with tragedies such as these," said Deputy Thomas Gilliland with the Harris County Sheriff's Office, which is investigating the incident. "We stress the proper storing and locking of weapons away from children and others."

Among the questions is where the gun was stored and if the gun had a lock, Gilliland said.

Estella Olguin said Child Protective Services would be involved with such matters as offering the family counseling to cope with the shooting and adopting safety measures that could eliminate future tragedy.

"Our end is more about risk and safety to a child," she said. "How can we keep other children safe in that home?"

She said CPS had not previously handled any cases involving the family, and noted that the boy, an only child, was visiting his grandfather's home.

A neighbor said the family, which lives in an approximately 5,000-square-foot home, was well respected and would appreciate privacy.

"Our neighbors are the nicest folks in the neighborhood," said the man who asked not to be named. "They are great people."

Harris County, part of a region in which gun ownership is particularly prevalent, has seen a rash of accidental shootings involving children in recent months.

Three children were shot, two of them fatally, in a four-day span earlier this year. A 3-year-old died after he shot himself with a handgun he found in a purse. A 4-year-old killed himself with a handgun found under a bed. A 6-year-old was hospitalized with gun wounds after his young brother found a handgun in a backpack.

The exact number of child gun deaths nationwide is difficult to pin down because standards and definitions used by medical examiners fluctuate.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 311 children under 14 died from accidental shootings between 2007 and 2011. An estimated 660 are hospitalized each year for firearm injuries.

Gene Grant, a range safety officer at Houston's Top Gun Range, stressed that guns should have safety protection on triggers and be locked away in safes or cabinets.

"You always protect the trigger and you have it secured in a safe or somewhere where they can't reach it," he said of children. "Some kids can get around safeties."

The Harris County Constable for Precinct 4, which includes the area where the Sunday shooting occurred, is among the law enforcement agencies offering free gun locks to the public.

The constable's Web page includes a video message from shooting sports champion Julie Golob.

"As a parent, if you have guns at home, it is vital you have a conversation with your kids about gun safety," Golob says. "Even if you don't have guns, the conversation is still important."