A 6-year-old kindergartener died on Tuesday from what Lakeland Police say was an accidental, self-inflicted gunshot wound after he found a pistol in his adult brother’s rental car.
The boy, Major Smith, had been with his father, Myron Smith Sr., and his adult brother, Myron Smith Jr,. just before the incident occurred at 3:44 p.m. Sunday, Lakeland Police spokeswoman Stephanie Kerr said in a press release Wednesday afternoon.
All three had returned from the store and Myron Jr. remained in his rental car, a gray Nissan Altima, for a short time. Myron Sr. and Major got out of the car and were sitting on the porch of their home in the 200 block of West Crawford Street.
Myron Jr. got out of the car, closed the door and went into the house briefly.
“Myron Sr. was still outside, but making a phone call, when Major was able to get into the Nissan and access the Glock 19X, which was left between the driver’s seat and the center console,” Kerr wrote.
When Myron Sr. heard the gunshot, he rushed to the car to find Major with an injury to his head and the firearm on the driver’s seat. Myron Jr. drove Major to the Lakeland Regional Health Medical Center Emergency Room in the rental car. Myron Jr. stayed at LRH with Major, whose injuries were severe and critical, Kerr wrote.
There was a heavy police presence outside the emergency room Sunday evening and the Nissan Altima, which had a shattered window, was cordoned off with crime scene tape. It was towed away at about 7 p.m.
Major was described as “a loving son and big brother to his twin sisters,” in a fundraising appeal posted by Cynthia Rodriguez of Buffalo, New York, the boy’s grandmother. By Thursday afternoon, the family had raised half of their $5,000 goal to help offset medical and funeral expenses.
Major was a happy little boy who “brought light and love to everyone who knew him,” Rodriguez wrote. He was enrolled in school but was on the autism spectrum and had special needs, she said.
No charges have been filed at this time, Kerr said, noting that the case is still open and active. She asked that anyone with information contact Detective Neal Robertson at neal.robertson@lakelandgov.net.
10 years, 10 unintentional shootings
Smith is not the first child to die in Polk County after finding a loaded, unsecured handgun.
Since 2015, there have been at least nine other unintentional shootings by children in Polk County. Three of those shootings were fatal:
Dec. 16, 2022, Lakeland — Josiah Cruz, 12, was having a sleepover at a 13-year-old friend’s home when he found a loaded handgun inside a vehicle in the garage. While handling the gun, a round discharged. Cruz was rushed to Tampa General Hospital but died a short time later. He was a seventh grader at Lake Gibson Middle School.
Jan. 20, 2017, Auburndale — Four-year-old Avion Weaver found a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun that belonged to his mother’s boyfriend. He fired it unintentionally, hitting himself in the face. He was flown to Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital in Orlando but died shortly after.
Nov. 28, 2016, Winter Haven — Kyler Daughtry, 14, was hanging out with two friends in the extended-stay motel where they all lived. A 16-year-old boy was trying to show the others how to load a 12-gauge shotgun when he unintentionally fired it, hitting Daughtry in the chest. Daughtry was pronounced dead at the scene. He was an eighth-grader at Lake Alfred-Addair Middle School.
The other six shootings resulted in injuries:
Aug. 14, 2023, Lakeland — A 14-year-old boy unintentionally shot himself in the shin with a loaded handgun while traveling west on Interstate 4. Katlynn Briley Mahon, 33, of South Carolina, who was driving the car, was charged with “culpable negligence inflicting actual harm” and several drug offenses. She had 32 grams of cocaine, 96 grams of marijuana and a second handgun in the car. Two other teenagers, 14 and 16, were also in the vehicle. She was not the mother of any of the teens but had been entrusted with their care.
Mar. 5, 2023, Lakeland — A 13-year-old boy unintentionally shot and wounded an 11-year-old girl in a car parked at the Salvation Army building on Jim Galloway Road. The boy tucked a loaded handgun into his waistband, causing it to discharge unintentionally. The bullet hit the girl in the leg. The boy, who was on probation at the time, was charged with possession of a firearm by a delinquent, carrying a concealed firearm, unlawful possession by a person under 17 and culpable negligence.
June 15, 2022, Lakeland — A 14-year-old boy unintentionally shot himself in his left forearm with a handgun that he and two friends had stolen from a car the night before. The trio committed at least six car burglaries and found two guns. All three were charged with possession of a firearm by a juvenile, grand theft of a firearm and other crimes related to the burglaries.
May 21, 2021, Lakeland — A 3-year-old boy unintentionally shot and wounded his 2-year-old sister after finding an unsecured, loaded handgun between couch cushions. Gun owner Kevonte Wilson, 23, was charged with failure to store a firearm safely and carrying a concealed firearm.
Jan. 24, 2018, Bartow — A 12-year-old boy who went to his uncle’s car to retrieve a phone charger noticed a handgun and picked it up. It unintentionally discharged, striking him in the hand. The boy’s uncle, Michael Russell Caraway, 23, then panicked and threw the weapon into a phosphate pit. Police later charged him with tampering with evidence and failure to secure a firearm.
Oct. 23, 2015, Bartow — While reaching for a container of candy on top of a refrigerator at a relative’s home, 5-year-old Carlos Delgado bumped one of two loaded handguns also kept on the fridge, discharging the gun and shooting himself in the hand. He was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office declined to press charges.
The big picture
Between 2015 and 2024, there were at least 245 unintentional shootings by children in Florida, resulting in 96 deaths. Nine of those shootings and three of the deaths happened in Polk County.
Lakeland is Florida’s 19th largest city by population, but it is tied for 11th when it comes to unintentional shootings by children. In addition:
- All of the shootings in Polk County were by boys.
- The shooters’ ages ranged from 3 to 16.
- Someone was charged criminally in seven of the nine cases.
- Most kids found the gun in a car, the kitchen or the living room.
- Counting Smith, four shootings were in cars. Six were in homes.
Free gun locks and safety training
The American Academy of Pediatrics has identified gun violence as a public health epidemic, noting that about one-third of American children live in homes with firearms, and of these households, 43% contain at least one unlocked firearm.
Several local nonprofit organizations offer free gun locks, printed gun safety materials, firearm training courses and trauma kits.
* The League of Women Voters of Polk County has distributed more than 1,800 free gun locks at community events and outreach locations. Anyone who would like one is invited to pick one up at the Learning Resource Center at 1628 South Florida Ave. You can also email info@lwvpolk.org.
The locks work by threading a cable through a handgun to keep ammunition out. This prevents a magazine from being inserted and keeps the gun’s slide mechanism from loading a bullet. The locks — which cost $5 to $10 on Amazon — also work on revolvers, sporting rifles, bolt-action rifles, semi-automatic and pump-action firearms.
* In-Gauge of Polk County, located in Winter Haven, has given away more than 1,500 free gun locks since 2022, according to executive director Robert Dummett. It conducts free “Stop the Bleed” classes for youth groups and the general public.
“The locks are provided through financial contributions of local businesses that have an interest in promoting child gun safety and reducing child-involved gun-related accidents,” Dummett said.
To have a free gun lock mailed to your home, email robert_admin@ingaugepolkcounty.org.
LkldNow’s Insight Polk independent reporting initiative is made possible by the Community Indicators Project with funding by GiveWell Community Foundation & United Way of Central Florida. All editorial decisions are made by LkldNow.
Cindy Glover and Kimberly C. Moore are reporters for LkldNow, a nonprofit newsroom providing independent local news for Lakeland. Read at LkldNow.com
