9-Year-Old Dies In Accidental Shooting: Police

CHICAGO, IL — A 9-year-old boy was accidentally shot and killed Thursday afternoon in Chicago's North Austin neighborhood, police said. Officials said the boy, identified as Ashton Lipscomb, was playing with a gun at around 1:45 p.m. at a home in the 1500 block of North Lorel when he accidentally discharged it and was struck in the head by a bullet.

The 9-year-old was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:29 p.m.

According to the Chicago Tribune, Ashton's 13-year-old brother told police it was their 5-year-old sibling who found the gun in a bedroom and accidentally shot Ashton in the back of the head. But police told Patch they have not confirmed reports that another sibling may have fired the gun.

Police said the children's father told officers he was picking up his wife from the hospital at the time of the shooting. It was unclear whether an adult was watching the children when it happened.

Police reportedly found three guns in a bedroom at the home.

The Department of Children and Family Services is investigating.