BERKELEY, Mo. — The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office issued charges Tuesday morning against a man in connection with his grandson's accidental shooting death.
At about 10 a.m. Monday, 7-year-old Darnell Macon was killed after a shooting inside a truck parked on Larry Lane in Berkeley.
According to a probable cause statement, 45-year-old Walter Macon of Kinloch, Missouri, was loading studio recording equipment into his truck when he allowed his grandson into the backseat of the truck and told him to climb into the front seat, where Macon's loaded Smith & Wesson .40 caliber handgun between the driver's seat and the center console.
Macon had left the child in the truck for about 5 1/2 minutes, the probable cause statement says. When Macon returned to the truck, he found his grandson slumped over the front passenger seat with a gunshot wound to his head that was believed to be self-inflicted.
Police said Macon admitted that the firearm was his and that he knew it was in the truck when he left his grandson alone inside.
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office charged Macon with one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child resulting in death and one count of armed criminal action, according to the criminal complaint.
"I've seen a lot of crime scenes, and the fact that a seven-year-old child is dead is just that much more tragic and heartbreaking," County Prosecutor Attorney Wesley Bell said in a statement Tuesday. "We have a gun problem in this country, and we need to address it yesterday."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the U.S. saw over 45,000 gun-related deaths in 2020, or about 124 deaths each day. More than 26,000 of those deaths were due to suicide and about 550 were preventable, happening while cleaning or playing with a gun or another accidental incident.
Researchers, health care professionals and gun owners have proven the safe and secure storage of firearms can reduce firearm-related injuries and deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Click here to learn more about safe firearm storage and where to get free gun locks in the St. Louis area.
Resources for crime victims
If you have been a victim of a crime or know someone who has been, 5 On Your Side has compiled a list of resources.
The Crime Victim Center of St. Louis has multiple programs to support victims of crime. Crime Victim Center’s programs range from direct services to crime victims as well as “creating awareness and change within the systems they encounter.”
Life Outside of Violence "helps those harmed by stabbing, gunshot or assault receive the treatment, support and resources they need to find alternatives to end the cycle of violence."
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has the Neighborhood Healing Network, which serves people who have experienced crime, violence or been the victim of an incident that caused trauma.
Cure Violence is an international organization that is present in a handful of St. Louis neighborhoods. Violence interrupters are trained to de-escalate violent situations within their own communities.