Abigail Margulis

amargulis@citizen-times.com

Editor's note: A new analysis from the Associated Press and the USA TODAY Network has found minors are dying from accidental shootings at a pace of one every other day during the first half of 2016. The investigation examined more than 1,000 incidents from Jan. 1, 2014 through June 30, 2016. Six of those incidents were in Western North Carolina, as reported here.

April 4, 2016

An 11-year-old Rutherford County boy shot himself in the head after getting hold of a small-caliber handgun in his home. The incident happened about 9:30 p.m., and the boy’s parents and siblings were home at the time.

Feb. 6, 2016

A 14-year-old accidentally shot himself in the head while he was handling a gun at his home in Franklin, according to the Macon County Sheriff's Office.

The boy suffered a brain injury and remained in critical condition on Oct. 12, according to Macon County Sheriff Robbie Holland.

Detectives said they believed the victim may have thought the gun was unloaded at the time he was handling it. There were other children home at the time of the shooting, but no adults were present.

This shooting was tragic, but the sheriff's office has used it as an example to promote gun safety, Holland said.

"Anytime you have children around a home, people need to make sure they take the opportunity to make sure their guns are secured," he said. "We need to educate the community and parents about the importance of keeping these guns secured."

Oct. 26, 2015

Two-year-old Abagail Newman died after being shot in her chest accidentally by a 3-year-old in Hendersonville. The toddler picked up a loaded 20-gauge shotgun that had been left on a coffee table in the home where Newman was being babysat.

Heather Ann Bradburn Stepp, 29, said her husband James Fuller Stepp, 31, had gone hunting the night before and left his gun lying on the table. She didn't realize the gun was loaded when the children got it and shots were fired.

The couple pleaded guilty to misdemeanor negligent storage of a firearm in January. They were sentenced to one year of unsupervised probation and ordered to pay a $200 fine. A 45-day jail sentence was suspended.

Since Abagail's death her mother Angel Newman said life has been hard.

"It’s a struggle constantly to get out of bed, to get dressed, to continue living when a lot of days you just want to crawl in a hole and die," she said during a June interview. "It is immensely hard not to see her, touch her or hear her. I constantly think about what she would be doing, or what clothes I would buy her or what I would get her for her birthday. I think of every aspect because in my heart, with everything I have, I just want her back."

Jan. 17, 2015

A 17-year-old teen died from a gunshot wound in Hot Springs.

Oct. 23, 2014

A child accidentally shot his sister in the hand with a handgun at a home in downtown Hendersonville about 5:30 p.m., according to a police report.

Oct. 1, 2014

A 7-year-old girl was accidentally shot by another juvenile near a home on Helen’s Lane in Rutherford County. The child was injured after kids found a backpack with a gun near the victim’s home. Another juvenile pulled the gun out of the backpack, shots were fired and the victim was wounded in her buttocks. The other juveniles included two family members and a neighbor friend.

Nationally, children die in accidental shootings at pace of one every other day