9-year-old shot in St. Louis County, suspect in custody

Kevin S. Held and Nick Gladney

4 hours ago

FILE – A courtroom inside the 21st Judicial Circuit Court in St. Louis County.

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. – A 10-year-old girl is hospitalized and her father jailed following an accidental shooting in north St. Louis County Wednesday evening.

According to Vera Clay, a St. Louis County Police Department spokeswoman, officers responded to a shooting call just before 10:25 pm in the 11100 block of Pritchard Drive

Police arrived to find the girl suffering a gunshot wound. The child was rushed to the hospital, where she remains listed in critical condition.

Clay said police questioned the girl’s father, Christopher Turner, who said he was handling the firearm when it discharged and struck the child.

Turner was taken into custody that evening.

The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Turner on Thursday with one count of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child. Turner remains jailed on a $200,000 cash-only bond.

The investigation is still ongoing.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misstated the child’s age based on information provided to us by police. We regret the error.