Get breaking news alerts and special reports. The news and stories that matter, delivered weekday mornings.

Police in Louisiana shot and killed a 6-year-old boy Tuesday after opening fire on a car during a nighttime chase, authorities said.

The boy's father, who was at the wheel, was also hit, and was hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said.

The shooting unfolded at 9:30 p.m. CT, after officers in the city of Marksville opened fire at the conclusion of the chase, state police said.

The state police did not explain the reason for the chase, or the circumstances that caused the officers to shoot at the car.

Local NBC affiliate WDSU reported that the car backed into the officers on a dead-end street.

The station quoted the Avoyelles Parish coroner's office as saying the boy was accidentally shot by the officers.

The office identified the boy as Jeremy David Mardis and said he was shot five times in the head and chest. His father was identified as Chris Few.