HOUSTON — Editor's note: The video above is from the original story on July 10, 2018.
A Harris County deputy has been indicted in connection with the accidental shooting of his 4-year-old stepson.
Tommy Anderson is charged with making a firearm accessible to a child, according to the Harris County District Attorney's Office.
They say the little boy got the weapon from an unlocked gun case and accidentally shot himself in the head.
The shooting happened on July 10, 2018 at the family's home in Hockley. The District Attorney's Office said Anderson was on a walk with his daughter when his stepson opened the door of Anderson's unlocked gun safe. The gun -- which was not his duty weapon -- did not have a safety and was left loaded.
“This case is heartbreaking for all involved,” Ogg said in a statement released Thursday. “With gun-ownership comes tremendous responsibility. We must properly secure our firearms.”
Miraculously, the child survived and recently started kindergarten.
The charge of making a firearm accessible to a child, is a Class A misdemeanor and is punishable by up to a year in jail.
"The fact he's a police officer makes no difference," said HCDAO prosecutor Gilbert Sawtelle. "This law appeals to all of Harris County and all of Texas for that matter."
Anderson will be placed on civilian administrative duty pending the outcome of the criminal case.
2 children shot in 2 days
The day before the Hockley shooting, a 2-year-old Houston boy died after accidentally shooting himself with his father's gun.
Christopher Williams Jr. found the gun on a couch at his father's home, where he was visiting.
Christopher Williams Sr., 35, faces a misdemeanor charge of making a firearm accessible to a child.
According to an investigation by USA Today, a child under 12 dies almost every week from accidental shootings in the US, usually caused by an unsecured loaded gun and a guardian’s lapse in attention.
VIDEOS: Other accidental shootings involving children
June 2019 in Fort Bend County
Conroe, May 2019
Houston, January 2019
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