CLEVELAND, Ohio — Investigators say a 10-year-old boy was shot early Monday morning in this home near East 77th Street and St Clair Avenue.
Police said the boy's aunt was handling a gun, shot through the ceiling and the round went through the floor of the bedroom the 10-year-old was in and hit the boy in the head.
Cleveland City Councilwoman Stephanie Howse represents the ward where the shooting happened.
“It’s very devastating to hear the news that we lost one of Ward seven's babies,” said Howse.
Howse is calling for strict gun laws and training as our state eases restrictions for gun owners.
“You cannot highlight the importance for those who have access to guns, knowing how to store them and knowing how to lock them up but then when next week all bets are off in Ohio,” said Howse.
Howse is referencing Ohio’s recently signed permitless carry bill, starting next week Ohioans 21 and older can carry a concealed firearm without any training or background check.
On Monday, Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb told ABC News that he's not happy about the bill.
“It’s making it harder for me as mayor of Cleveland to keep our streets safe day in and day out,” said Bibb.
But back in March, Rob Sexton with the Buckeye Firearms Association told News 5 that the legislation protects families.
“In some cases, they [family members] may not have time to go get a permit, or go through the classes or the training,” said Sexton.
According to the Health Policy Institute of Ohio, between 1999 and 2020 there's been a 123% increase in homicides and many of them are gun related.
While police aren't calling Monday’s shooting a homicide, that 10 year's old aunt was arrested.
Bibb said more concealed guns on the street will not making things easier as we move ahead.
“I’m a democratic mayor in a red state, Governor DeWine right here in Ohio gave us a grant of nearly $2 million to address violence prevention in our city,” said Bibb. “We have to do a better job of making sure these republicans know how hard it is to keep our city safe with these very dangerous gun laws.”
RELATED: 10-year-old fatally shot in Cleveland early Monday morning
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