A 2-year-old Milwaukee boy found his father's handgun and accidentally shot himself with it, police said Wednesday.

The toddler is expected to survive, and his father was arrested after police say he left the gun in an accessible location in the house.

The shooting occurred about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday in the 3400 block of N. 36th St., and prosecutors are expected to review the case later this week.

In recent years, multiple children in Milwaukee picked up a gun and seriously hurt or killed themselves or someone else. In some of the cases, their parents or caregiver has faced charges related to the shooting.

Last month, a 22-year-old Milwaukee woman was charged with felony child neglect after prosecutors say her 4-year-old son found a handgun in her purse and shot himself in the hand.

A recent investigation by the USA TODAY Network and The Associated Press examining fatal accidental shootings of children found nearly identical accidents can have markedly different outcomes. A shooting that leads to a prison sentence in one state can end with no prosecution at all in another.

On average, children under age 12 die from gun accidents in the United States about once a week, the news organizations found. In their analysis of accidental shootings causing injuries or death, Wisconsin fell in the middle of the rankings for states, hewing close to the national average of 3.4 incidents per million people.

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Last weekend, a 15-year-old boy accidentally shot his 17-year-old friend while they were turkey hunting in Vernon County. The wounded teen died from his injuries.

Most of the high-profile cases of accidental shootings in Milwaukee have involved curious toddlers who found unsecured, loaded handguns in homes and vehicles.

Last year in the city, a 4-year-old boy found a gun and fatally shot himself. His mother was arrested, but prosecutors did not issue charges.

In another case, a 6-year-old boy shot his 9-year-old brother, resulting in fractured ribs and blood buildup in the boy's chest.

Prosecutors filed misdemeanor charges of leaving a firearm near a child against their mother, Nicole L. Jackson, and the 6-year-old's father, Dominique D. Phillips. Phillips also was charged with being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Jackson pleaded guilty and was sentenced in April to nine months in jail, but the judge postponed the sentence and placed her on one year of probation. If she completes her probation successfully, she won't have to serve the jail time. Phillips' case remains pending.

In another case from last year, a gun slid out from under a driver's seat and a 2-year-old boy grabbed the weapon. The gun fired, sending a bullet through the seat in front of him and killing his mother as she drove on the freeway. No charges were filed in that case.

Wisconsin's misdemeanor law for these types of shootings applies under specific circumstances: if an adult recklessly stores or leaves a loaded firearm within reach or easy access of a child; if the child obtains the firearm without permission of the owner, guardian or caretaker; and if the child fires the gun and causes bodily harm or death.

"We don't prosecute very many of them, probably two a year or so, and we don't have many referred to us," said Milwaukee County Chief Deputy District Attorney Kent Lovern.

"We certainly have seen this here, but many times, the circumstances are such that the parent should not be held liable," Lovern said Wednesday. "It's just a tragic set of circumstances."

The law has several exceptions. The gun owner isn't held responsible if a child somehow retrieves and fires a gun with a trigger lock or a gun stored in a lockbox or if a young person illegally entered a house or some other locked dwelling to access a gun.

"Clearly the law exists to remind gun owners that if they foresee children being in the same area as the firearms that they are responsible for, they need to take particular safeguards that the firearms don't fall into the hands of a child," Lovern said.

The spate of accidental shootings was one reason the city's Health Department launched a campaign in March to give away 300 free gun safety locks. The locks were provided through a partnership with the U.S. Attorney's Office and were available at the city's three health centers, Police Districts 2, 5, and 7, as well as community partners.

On Wednesday, the nonprofit WestCare Wisconsin's Youth Action Council announced it had secured 1,000 more to give away, thanks to a donation from Master Lock.

The Youth Action Council began its "Love Up, Lock Down" campaign in December to educate young adults about the importance of firearm safety.

“These young men and women ... have been able to reach their peers and neighbors and educate them about gun safety in a way no one else could have,” said Elizabeth Coggs, WestCare Wisconsin regional vice president, in a news release.

The council will go door-to-door offering free gun locks Friday afternoon in the area of N. 36th and W. Townsend streets, where the toddler accidentally shot himself Tuesday night. They also will offer the locks this weekend at the "Heal the Hood" event on N. 10th St. and Atkinson Ave.