A Tomball father is behind bars after investigators say he tried to get rid of a gun and shell casings moments after his 3-year-old son accidentally shot himself in the hand. The boy was treated at a hospital, and authorities are still looking for the firearm, a case that is once again putting a spotlight on how guns are stored around very young children.
Court documents state that 25-year-old Lucas Nahum Benitez has been charged with deadly conduct involving a discharged firearm and with tampering with or fabricating physical evidence after the toddler was hurt Thursday morning, according to ABC13 Houston. The filings say the child’s mother, Bailey Falbo, told officers she keeps a handgun in her purse and heard a “pop” before finding her son crying, then rushed him to a nearby hospital.
Hospital workers later told police that a man showed up carrying a large purse and a child’s bookbag, saying the items belonged to Falbo. According to the court records, that man said Benitez had given him the bags in a CVS parking lot and told him he had “tossed” the gun.
How state law applies
Texas has a child-access law that can make adults criminally liable if a minor gets hold of a “readily dischargeable” firearm because of an adult’s criminal negligence. That rule is spelled out in Texas Penal Code §46.13, which details when someone can be held responsible for a child’s access to a gun…