Boy, 12, Lands in Hospital After Self-Inflicted Gun Wound

Editor's note: This story has been changed to reflect a correction. The gun was not in a safe but rather sitting on top of a cabinet.

A 12-year-old boy was treated and released from the hospital on Saturday after accidentally shooting himself with a gun he found in his grandmother's house.

The grandmother, a Port Washington resident, has since been charged with one count of "leaving a loaded firearm within easy reach of a child," according to a press release from the .

Port Washington police responded to Aurora Hospital in Grafton at 12:55 p.m. Saturday after hospital staff reported the self-inflicted gunshot wound.

The boy had been staying with his grandmother, who lives on Portview Drive in Port Washington. The woman admitted to having a gun, loaded in a case, in her home, according to the release. She also said the gun is usually kept in a "locked" condition by way of a built-in locking mechanism; however, at the time of the accident the firearm’s locking mechanism was not activated.

Police were able to determine that the 12-year-old located the gun on top of a cabinet in the living room while his grandmother was napping.  While he was handling the gun, it accidentally discharged, striking the grandson in the upper thigh.

He immediately reported the injury to his grandmother, who treated the wound and contacted the boy’s mother. The grandmother along with the boy’s mother transported him to the hospital for treatment following the incident.