DETROIT (WWJ) – A Detroit man is facing child abuse charges after his 2-year-old son was shot in the mouth by an airsoft gun last Friday.
The BB gun had been kept on a china cabinet inside a home in the 4000 block of Bedford Street – near Outer Drive and Mack Avenue on the city’s east side – according to the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.
The gun discharged and hit 31-year-old Melvin Phillips’s 2-year-old son in the mouth, officials said.
Phillips has been charged with one count of second-degree child abuse and was expected to be arraigned Monday afternoon.
Police said on March 4 Phillips told authorities the gun had been on top of the china cabinet and fell off, hit the ground and discharged, striking the boy’s lip.
The prosecutor’s office said Phillips was allegedly handling the gun when it discharged.
The boy reportedly lost two teeth in the incident.
Phillips and the child’s mother took the boy to a hospital for treatment, the prosecutor’s office said. While they were there, police spoke with the parents and conducted an investigation, ultimately removing the airsoft gun from the home.
Phillips was arraigned in 36th District Court Monday afternoon and received a $10,000/10% bond. His Probable Cause Conference was set for March 21.
The boy had been listed in temporary serious condition, but is expected to recover.
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