VAN NUYS : Girl, 5, Shot at Home During Altercation
A 5-year-old Van Nuys girl was wounded in the chest by a stray bullet during an altercation among family members and friends, Los Angeles police said Thursday.
The girl, whose name was not released, was in fair condition after surgery at Childrens Hospital of Los Angeles, spokeswoman Maria Iacobo said.
The incident began just before midnight Wednesday when the girl’s uncle, Danny Miles, 44, and a friend of her mother’s got into an argument at the family’s apartment in the 8000 block of Langdon Street, Officer K. Jackson said.
The dispute escalated into a fistfight and the girl’s mother tried to separate the two men, Jackson said.
The gun, which was in Miles’ waistband, went off, striking the girl, Jackson said. “It appears accidental,†he said.
Miles was in custody at Van Nuys Jail on suspicion of child endangerment in lieu of $45,000 bail, Jackson said.
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