Brittany Horn

The News Journal

A 25-year-old man was arrested after Wilmington police say he accidentally shot his father in the foot.

Police were called at about 9:35 a.m. to the Wilmington Hospital Emergency Room in reference to a shooting, Sgt. Andrea Janvier said.

At the hospital, officers found a 51-year-old man with a gunshot wound to his right foot, she said.

Investigators with the Criminal Investigations Division determined the shooting was accidental after it was explained that David Avant was showing his father a gun in a home on the 800 block of Morrow St., Janvier said. The gun was accidentally fired when Avant was showing the man the gun, hitting him in the foot, she said.

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Avant turned himself into police headquarters Wednesday. Though he wasn't charged with shooting his father, he is prohibited from having a gun and was charged accordingly. Bail information was not available Wednesday afternoon.

His father has been released from the hospital and is recovering from his injuries, Janvier said.

Contact Brittany Horn at (302) 324-2771 or bhorn@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter at @brittanyhorn.