A 15-Year-Old Killed Himself After Accidentally Fatally Shooting His 17-Year-Old Friend On New Year's Eve

The teen was showing off a handgun to three friends inside a shed when it accidentally fired.

A Georgia teenager killed himself just minutes after accidentally fatally shooting his friend while showing off a handgun on New Year's Eve, police said.

Devin Hodges, 15, was showing three of his friends the weapon in a makeshift shed on the property in Lawrenceville when he accidentally fired the gun around 3:15 p.m. on Dec. 31, according to the Gwinnett County Police Department.

The bullet struck Chad Carless, 17, who was sitting next to Hodges in the shed.

The three teenage boys left the shed, with one calling 911, but Carless died at the scene before help could arrive.

"As officers were arriving on scene, Hodges was seen running between two homes, where he then took his own life with the handgun," police said.

"Our thoughts are with the families of both these young men," officers added.

According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, there is a gun in one-third of all US homes with children, but many of the weapons are stored loaded and/or unlocked.

The AAP and the National Rifle Association have urged parents to lock up firearms where children and teenagers cannot access them.

"Make sure all firearms cannot be reached by anyone who should not have access to them without your consent," the NRA advises. "Store guns so they are not accessible to unauthorized persons, especially children."

The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org.

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