Palmetto man charged after child finds gun, shoots 5-year-old, deputies say
A Palmetto man’s failure to secure his handgun triggered a near-fatal accident when a 9-year-old found the weapon and shot a 5-year-old in the chest, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.
Robert Richard Giles, 36, is charged with culpable negligence involving a firearm, a third-degree felony, in connection with a March 25 shooting, according to court records. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison under Florida law.
Deputies responded to a home on 57th Street East in Palmetto and found a 5-year-old suffering from a gunshot wound to the upper chest, according to the arrest report.
Investigators say the shooting happened after a 9-year-old entered a bedroom looking for Pokémon items and instead found a Canik 9mm handgun on the floor under the bed. The child told investigators he intended to put the gun away, but it went off, hitting the younger child, according to the arrest report.
The child suffered a pierced lung and a broken collarbone and spent about five days on a breathing tube, deputies said. The bullet passed through the child’s chest and exited the home through a bedroom wall, according to the arrest report.
Man left gun unsecured in Palmetto home, investigators say
Giles initially told deputies the firearm had been stored in a nightstand.
But in an interview with detectives, the 9-year-old said he found the gun on the floor under the bed and did not describe removing it from a holster, a nightstand or any secured location, according to the report. Investigators said they determined the weapon was not secured in a way that would prevent access by a minor.
Giles told deputies he was in the kitchen when he heard a “pop,” according to the arrest report. He later acknowledged the firearm had been kept with a round in the chamber, the report says.
After discovering the child had been shot, Giles told investigators he picked up the firearm and placed it inside a gun safe in the bedroom, according to the arrest report. When deputies later executed a search warrant, they opened that safe and found the handgun inside with a magazine nearby and a spent casing still seated in the chamber, the report says.
Palmetto man arrested
Investigators say the safe, which contained multiple firearms, was within about 10 feet of where the handgun had been left unsecured on the floor, according to the arrest report.
Detectives say Giles failed to store the firearm in a locked container or with a trigger lock as required by Florida law when minors may gain access.
Deputies arrested Giles about a week after the shooting. He later posted a $2,500 bond. He is scheduled for arraignment before Circuit Judge Frederick Mercurio, according to court records.
