It is alleged that a 10-year-old boy shot and killed his mother because she refused to buy him a virtual reality headset.
Initially, the boy claimed the shooting was an accident, but later claimed he shot his mother on purpose.
His aunt and sister claim he has not cried or shown any remorse in the wake of her death because he logged into her Amazon account the morning after she died and ordered a headset.
He has been charged as an adult with first-degree reckless homicide and is currently in juvenile detention as a result of his actions.
Apparently, the incident took place just before 7am on 21 November in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Children as young as 10 may be charged as adults for certain serious crimes, but lawyers can request that the case be moved to a juvenile court.
Angela Cunningham, one of the boy’s lawyers, said: “This is an absolute tragedy for the family.”.
“I don’t think anybody would deny or disagree with that… the adult system is absolutely ill-equipped to address the needs of a 10-year-old child.”
Criminal charges seen by the Journal Sentinel state the boy told officers he got the gun from his mother’s room and went down to the basement where she was doing laundry.
Police in Milwaukee initially claimed that the boy had been “playing” with the gun when it fired, killing his mother.
Police said the incident would be reviewed by the Milwaukee County District Attorney General’s Office.
In addition, they urged the public to “secure firearms with a gunlock and keep them out of the reach of children”.
In the days following the incident, however, concerned relatives contacted the police.
In the past, the boy has been accused of “disturbing behavior,” including swinging a puppy by its tail when he was four years old.
According to his family, he filled a balloon with flammable liquid and set it alight, causing an explosion that burned furniture and carpet.
The boy told his family that he hears imaginary people talking to him.
On the day of the shooting, he also physically attacked his seven-year-old cousin.
A second interview with police revealed he tried shooting a wall to scare her, causing her to be wounded.
In addition, he said he took the gun because his mother woke him up 30 minutes earlier than usual, at 6am.