Two 3-year-old boys were recovering after they were shot by another child at an unlicensed home daycare in Dearborn, Mich., authorities said.
It’s unclear how the toddler got ahold of the handgun involved in Wednesday’s shooting.
The bullet went through one boy and hit the other. Both boys were transported to trauma centers, ABC affiliate WXYZ reported.
“The toddler who suffered the shoulder injury is expected to make a full recovery, while the other victim remains in serious but stable condition,” the City of Dearborn Police Department said in a press release Thursday.
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Several other children and adults were in the home when the shooting occurred. Police took the other children to the police station to be reunited with their families, WXYZ reported.
Samantha Eubanks, 31, regularly watches up to 10 or more children at the home, neighbors said.
Ashley Escobedo, Eubank’s sister, said Eubank sometimes watches her kids. Escobedo seemed bewildered that there would be a gun in the house.
“My sister is totally against guns,” Escobedo said to the Detroit Free Press. “She hates guns.”
The home daycare does not currently hold a license from the state of Michigan as a Family Child Care Home, the Detroit Free Press reports. If one to seven children — who are not related to the adult caretaker — receive care for a month or more per year, and if the caretaker brings in more than $600 annually from this babysitting, the law states the home must be registered. It is unclear if Eubank’s home met this criteria. Eubanks has six children of her own.
Police recovered weapons from the home and said the investigation is ongoing.
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