Every so often, you come across a story where you are not sure whose fault the bad outcome is. In this case, was it the mom's fault for allowing her 10-year-old to keep a .22 caliber rifle plus three other weapons found in his bedroom, or her son's fault for deciding to shoot her in the head with the .22.
According to the boy's uncle, the mother and her son fought about his performing the chore of carrying in firewood, and the boy's refusal turned into the last time he would ever say "no" to his mom. He shot her in the head with the .22 and then went to a neighbor's house to report it.
To the mom's credit, she did argue with her husband about their boy being in possession of the weapons, which once belonged to his grandfather. She wanted them out. He wanted them in. In the end, Dad is the one who moved out, and the guns remained on the gun rack mounted on the boy's bedroom wall.
The boy had some behavioral problems. When he was 6 he was disciplined at school after hitting his principal in the face and chest with a dustpan. He was transferred to a school for kids with special needs after that. More recently, a bus driver was called out by his mom for grabbing him by the back of the jacket while trying to control him from being disruptive.
Though there is a history of poor behavior, nothing violent was noting, making one wonder what would have been the outcome of the firewood fight if mom had won and there were no guns in the house. He has put in a plea of "denial," which I read is the same as saying "not guilty."
Sadly, we don't know, and now this boy has to live with the knowledge that he killed his mom. His sister, who was in the house at the time of the incident, will never forget what he did.
Read more about the story at usatoday.com by clicking here.
