8-Year-Old Shot And Killed In Milwaukee, Man Arrested: Police

MILWAUKEE, WI — Milwaukee police arrested a 47-year-old Milwaukee man on Saturday in connection to a fatal shooting that killed an 8-year-old girl, the Milwaukee Police Department said in a statement.

The shooting happened at the 1800 block of W. Highland Avenue around 2:25 p.m. Saturday, police said. Police said the man was handling a gun when it went off, and the bullet struck the girl. She died later in a local hospital.

The Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office would bring charges against the man in the "coming days," police said.

An autopsy will be performed on Monday, the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office said in a statement. Milwaukee police are investigating the shooting.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said that the girl's death was "heartbreaking," and that gun owners should secure their firearms with a trigger lock or a safe, and never handle them around children, The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported. "Please, put down the guns," Johnson said.

Milwaukee Fire Department said in a statement that the incident was "The absolute unimaginable. At least, it should be." The fire department gives away gun locks for free without questions nor paperwork, the department said.

People interested in getting gun locks should visit their local fire station or talk to Milwaukee firefighters when they see them out, the fire department said.