A man cleaning a shotgun shot a 9-year-old boy on a sidewalk Saturday in Roy.
The boy was in stable condition with "survivable" injuries late Saturday, said Roy police Chief Greg Whinham. The shotgun pellets pierced the child in four places, from his thigh to his neck, Whinham said.
The boy was visiting his grandfather in a mobile home park for seniors near 3800 S. 1900 West. At about 4 p.m., a 28-year-old man, house-sitting for his grandmother, was cleaning a shotgun.
The man dry-fired the 12-gauge but didn't realize there was a shell in the chamber, Whinham said. Just then, outside that trailer, the boy was walking by on the sidewalk.
Pellets pierced the window and struck the boy. Whinham estimated a distance of 8 feet between the muzzle and the boy.
An ambulance took him to McKay-Dee Hospital in Ogden. Then a helicopter flew the boy to Primary Children's Medical Center in Salt Lake City. Whinham did not disclose the name of the child or the man.
Whinham said the 28-year-old was cooperating. Crime scene investigators were at the trailer Saturday night to corroborate the man's story.
"We're going to investigate it as though it weren't an accident until we can prove otherwise," Whinham said.
