JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A teenage female is in critical condition at the hospital after she was shot in the head early Monday in North Jacksonville. Officers responded to the 14000 block of Golden Eagle Drive just after 1 a.m., a Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office news release states.
“The preliminary investigation has revealed the suspect and victim are known to one another, and the incident appears to be an accident,” the news release states. JSO said all parties involved are cooperating and speaking with detectives.
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“Stuff like that doesn’t happen around here,” Dale Holder, a man who lives in the neighborhood, said. “This is a pretty great neighborhood.”
Holder says he’s raised his four kids in the neighborhood and has never seen anything like this.
“Hopefully, this is an isolated incident, and I don’t expect something like this to happen again in this neighborhood,” Holder said.
This comes just a day and a half after another shooting took place off Inwood Terrance in the San Marco area on Saturday night.
Action News Jax is still waiting on details from JSO, but neighbors tell us that a 17-year-old was also shot in the head by a young woman. Those same neighbors tell us that the man is also currently in critical condition.
Rod Mills, the owner of Scorched Earth Firearms, says shootings like this are preventable.
“We want to ensure, first and foremost, that we know whether that gun is loaded or unloaded, and what condition it is in,” Mills said. “We never want to point a gun at anybody that we’re not trying to kill or destroy.”
He says it’s up to gun owners to do their due diligence and follow gun safety protocols.
“Every bullet that leaves a barrel has an attorney attached to it,” Mills said. “Once that bullet has left that barrel, you cannot bring that bullet back.”
Data from the Gun Violence Archive shows that there have been 35 accidental shootings in Florida so far this year. Eight of those shootings have happened at the hands of a minor.
Mills says taking the time to learn how to properly handle a gun could save someone’s life. He also says that, minor or not, if you find yourself in a situation where tempers are high, walk away.
“There are a lot of people in prison for life that went on an emotion that lasted five seconds, and it cost them their freedom,” Mills said. “We want to make sure that we are sound, mind and body, when we’re holding that or handling that firearm.”
Action News Jax is still waiting on both police reports from JSO. We will update you both online and on air as more information becomes available.
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