Mom Accidentally Shoots, Kills 2-Year-Old Girl In Wickliffe Hotel

WICKLIFFE, OH — A 2-year-old girl is dead after her mother accidentally shot her inside a suburban Cleveland hotel, police said. The shooting happened just before 11 p.m. Friday at an Econo Lodge in Wickliffe on Euclid Avenue.

A patrol officer and paramedics administered CPR on the child but the girl was declared dead at Lake West Hospital a short time later, local police said in a Facebook post on Saturday morning. A preliminary investigation indicated the girl's mother was "handling a firearm" when it went off. The bullet struck her daughter in the chest.

The gun was legally owned and the mother has a concealed-carry permit.

"All indications at this time are that the shooting was accidental," police said. An investigation remains ongoing and authorities will determine based on the evidence whether to press charges against the mother.

Police said they wouldn't release any names until the extended family can be properly notified of what happened.

"This is truly a tragic situation; please keep this beautiful young child and her family in your thoughts and prayers," the post said.

Three siblings in the room were not hurt, local media outlets reported.

The mother told a 911 dispatcher the gun's safety was off, according to a recording obtained by local media outlets.

"The safety was on when I dropped the gun and the bullet shot her," the mother says. "The gun dropped, I dropped my gun. She's gone. My baby's gone. She's not breathing at all. She's gone."

Photo credit: Renee Schiavone, Patch