The proverbial "I have a friend."

[OnlyOneVoice]

What is the name of your state? TX

Okay, here goes. I have a friend whose son accidentally shot a friend of his with a weapon that was stolen by 2 other friends in a burglary.

Here's the question. The shooting occured at the residence of the 2 boys who burglarized another residence and stole the guns.

Can the parents of the boys who stole the guns be held liable in anyway for the unsupervised situation that ended in this accidental shooting?

BTW both parents were intoxicated at the time of the incident and not supervising the 6 kids who were "playing around in the bedroom inside the detached garage."

Is there any charge that can be brought against the parents of the boys who stole the guns?

Any advice is appreciated.

 

[stephenk]

How old is the shooter? Depending on the age of the shooter, the shooter may be the only one responsible for the incident.

 

[OnlyOneVoice]

The kid in question is 15 years old. My friend's contention is that if the 2 boys hadn't stolen the gun, it wouldn't have been accessable to the 15 yo.

So if the parents had been providing adequate supervision then the gun would not have been available.

Could they be charged with making a handgun accessible to a minor due to negligence??

 

[gobonas99]

The kid in question is 15 years old. My friend's contention is that if the 2 boys hadn't stolen the gun, it wouldn't have been accessable to the 15 yo.

Due to the age of your friend's son, he will probably be the only one held responsible for the shooting.

A 15 year old should know better than to play with a gun - whether it is accessible or not. A 5 year old wouldn't know any better...maybe not even a 10 year old...but a 15 year old? Unless he is mentally incapacitated, he should have known better.

-Christina