A Houston mother was arrested and charged for accidentally shooting her 5-year-old son, Los Angeles’s local ABC affiliate reports.
According to Houston police, 24-year-old Angelia Mia Vargas, another, unnamed family member, and her son were riding bikes on Sunday afternoon when they were approached by a dog. The sight of the dog prompted Vargas to fire off multiple shots in its direction. Unfortunately, one of the bullets meant for the animal struck her son.
The dog was a 6-month old boxer puppy who ran out of the owner’s home. “I came out of my house because Bruno was barking and barking. I thought my brother was coming,” the owner said while explaining that he thought Bruno was alerting him to his brother’s presence. “So, I open the door just a little bit and he comes running out.”
The entire incident was caught on a Ring camera. The footage shows the dog roaming into the street before multiple gunshots were heard, which were followed by the boy’s parent’s screams.
Vargas’s 5-year-old son was shot in the abdomen by one of the three bullets meant for Bruno. He was taken to a local hospital where he was treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
“She could have handled it differently. You know, she was there, her husband was there, I was there, nothing would have happened. Nothing bad like that,” the dog’s owner said. “I was asleep and I had a dream hearing the little boy crying, and that’s what woke me up when I was sleeping yesterday.”
Bruno’s owner was issued a Class C misdemeanor citation for having a loose dog.
