A Georgia man was charged with leaving a loaded handgun unattended after a 5-year-old girl was shot in the face at her babysitter’s DeKalb County home.
Jada Willingham died on Friday, Dec. 4, soon after arriving at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Egleston Hospital, according to AJC.com.
Jada was shot in the face by a playmate she had known all her life, the AJC reports.
The shooting occurred in a babysitter’s Lithonia home. The 68-year-old woman told investigators Jada was one of four children she was watching in her home when she heard a shot ring out, followed by a scream.
She said Jada and her playmate were in a bedroom where they apparently found a loaded gun. The babysitter found Jada on the floor of the bedroom, bleeding from a wound to her face.
On Friday, Dec. 11, police charged Chad Brooks, Sr. with 2nd-degree murder and second-degree cruelty to children for allegedly leaving the gun unattended.
Brooks is currently in custody at the DeKalb County Jail, Fox 5 reports. Officials say they have not determined who fired the fatal shot.
The babysitter has not been charged.
A GofundMe page raised $10,000 for Jada’s funeral. She was laid to rest last week.
