March 22--Police believe the 7-year-old boy who was killed Sunday in his Englewood home accidentally shot himself in the head with a handgun as he played with an older brother.
Devon Lofton, a first-grader, died at Comer Children's Hospital about half an hour after he was rushed there from his home in the 6700 block of South Aberdeen Street.
Devon's 10-year-old brother brought the .22-caliber handgun into the house, police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said, and investigators are trying to determine who gave him the weapon or how he obtained it. Police have interviewed the brother and are tracing the gun's origin.
The brother hid the weapon in his mother's dresser drawer in her bedroom, a law enforcement source said. Devon, apparently knowing where the gun was hidden, went to the bedroom with another relative to get the gun, according to the source.
While Devon was handling the weapon, it went off and the boy was shot, the source said.
Devon's grandmother was watching television in the house when the gun went off, the source said, and his mother was running errands at the time.
Family members insisted the gun did not belong to any adult who lived there and they did not recognize the weapon, Guglielmi said. The shooting happened about 3:50 p.m. as the boys played in the home.
"This is an unspeakable tragedy and clearly illustrates the long-standing problem we have with guns on our streets," Guglielmi said.
Police do not expect criminal charges related to the shooting but are investigating whether the gun was involved in any previous crimes or shootings, using ballistics information to formulate a timeline for the weapon.
The results of an autopsy were pending, the medical examiner's office said, as the police investigation continues.
Neighbors said the boy lived with his mother, grandmother and siblings in the three-story home on Aberdeen. Andrew Holmes, a community activist who is working with the family, said relatives were devastated by the shooting.
Holmes said Devon "may have mistaken the gun as a toy gun. ... But the real question is who the gun belongs to."
Family members gathered at the home Monday, with visitors stepping past a bouquet of red, heart-shaped balloons tied to the front porch. A miniature teddy bear sat on the porch railing.
Chicago Tribune's Tony Briscoe contributed.
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