SCRANTON, Pa. — A 10-year-old Scranton boy shot himself in the hand Tuesday with pistol that the police said his father left out within the boy’s reach, city police said.
The boy was hospitalized at around 9 p.m. after the incident at his Cherry Street home, authorities said. The bullet went through his left hand. He was reportedly in stable condition.
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The child’s father, Michael A. Lemongello, 56, was arrested and charged with a count of child endangerment. A preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled June 2.
In a criminal complaint, acting Detective Jill Foley wrote that Lemongello left his loaded 9 mm Taurus gun on a shelf next to his bed while his son watched television. Lemongello said he briefly stepped away from the room then heard the boom of a gunshot.
Lemongello’s significant other, Joy Smith, told officers she had yelled at him in the past to keep the guns locked in a safe because their boy is curious and wants to touch everything.
Magisterial District Judge Alyce Hailstone Farrell arraigned Lemongello and released him on $20,000 unsecured bail.