A 4-Year-Old Boy Died After Being Shot In The Head While Play-Wrestling With His Dad

The boy's father was also shot in the head but is expected to survive.

A 4-year-old Indiana boy died Thursday after both he and his dad were shot in the head by the dad's gun while play-wrestling, authorities said.

The incident occurred Sunday just outside of Bloomington, where deputies from the Monroe County Sheriff's Office were called to the home of 36-year-old Tyler Shaw, RTV6 reported.

Shaw had been wrestling on a bed with his son, Tripp, while he had a handgun concealed in the small of his back, Fox 59 reported. The gun then fell and fired one shot, striking both Shaw and his son in the head.

The boy was taken to Riley Children's Hospital, where he later died. Shaw was taken to IU Health Bloomington Hospital and is expected to recover.

The Glock semi-automatic handgun was sent off for testing to determine why it had fired unexpectedly, the Bloomington Herald-Times reported. Calls to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office by BuzzFeed News were not immediately returned Saturday.

Shaw and his wife, Natalie, are also parents to two daughters, according to a GoFundMe established to help cover medical costs that has raised more than $18,000.

"It truly takes a village and I pray that the burden of medical debt will not cloud over their grief," the boy's aunt, Nikki Hughes, wrote on Facebook.

Hughes did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Indiana is an open carry state, with a permit. It was not immediately clear whether Shaw held a license for the gun or whether any criminal charges would be filed in connection with the shooting.

CORRECTION

Tripp Shaw's name was misstated in a photo caption in a previous version of th9si story.

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