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The incident happened in Litchfield County on Saturday, Sept. 30 around 12:40 p.m., when Watertown Police responded to a residence in Oakville on Hadley Street, where a 14-year-old boy had been found bleeding from his head.
According to the department, the boy, who had been alone in the residence, had been discovered by his grandmother after she returned home, who quickly called 911 and reported that he had fallen down a set of stairs.
Arriving officers found the boy conscious but incoherent on the residence's first floor, and saw that he was bleeding heavily from an injury to his head.
While Watertown Fire Department members gave medical aid to the boy, police then followed a blood trail upstairs into a bedroom used by adult members of the family. There, officers found a large amount of blood and an empty holster for a revolver.
An initial investigation conducted by authorities determined that the boy had managed to access an unsecured .22 revolver in the home while he was alone. He then started to play with the gun, which led to him accidentally shooting himself in the head, police said.
The boy was first taken to Waterbury Hospital before being transported to Connecticut Children's Medical Center by Lifestar, where he was listed in critical but stable condition.
After the incident, the Hadley Street residence was secured and police procured a search warrant, which they executed on Saturday evening. The search resulted in the department confiscating around 23 firearms from the residence, many of which were unsecured, according to authorities.
An investigation into the incident is still being conducted by Watertown Police as well as the Connecticut Department of Children and Families and the Waterbury States Attorney’s Office.
"The Watertown/Oakville community is heartbroken by this preventable tragedy," the department wrote in a statement on social media, adding, "Our message to every gun-owner is this – secure your firearms in accordance with the law. That means in a locked container where any person not eligible to possess that firearm cannot access it."
This is a developing story. Check back to Daily Voice for updates.
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