(St. Paul, IN) – A 10-year-old boy is recovering and a man is facing charges after an accidental shooting at the Love’s Truck Stop on U.S. Highway Old 421 in St. Paul on Saturday evening.
The Decatur County Dispatch Center received a call just after 9 p.m. reporting shots fired at the truck stop.
Decatur County Sheriff’s deputies responding to the scene were informed by dispatch that this was an accidental discharge of a firearm. When deputies arrived, a 10-year-old boy was being treated for gunshot wounds.
Deputies asked where the firearm was located and a man identified as David Lamar Gray told them the gun was on his hip. The firearm was retrieved and secured by deputies.
The sheriff’s office says Gray told investigators that he was carrying the gun in the waistband of his pants and as he was leaving the restroom, his pants were sagging so he pulled them up and the firearm discharged.
Investigators say Gray didn’t see anyone around and he went back into the restroom, worried that he had suffered a gunshot wound.
After determining he wasn’t shot, Gray left the restroom and started leaving the truck stop until he discovered the boy had been struck.
The 10-year-old was taken to Decatur County Memorial Hospital before being transferred to Riley Hospital for Children in Indianapolis. Authorities say his wounds were superficial.
Gray, who is from Cincinnati, has been charged with Criminal Recklessness (Level 6 felony).
Also responding were the St. Paul Volunteer Fire Department, Decatur County EMS, and Indiana State Police.
