Tragically, a mother in Florida was fatally shot in the middle of a Zoom conference with her colleagues, due to her own toddler accessing an unsecured gun.
According to the Altamonte Springs Police Department, a fellow participant in the call noticed the mother, Shamaya Lynn, fall backwards off the call after hearing a noise and seeing a toddler in the background. Upon arriving on the scene, responders found her with a gunshot wound to the head. It was determined that the toddler had accessed a loaded firearm that was not properly secured by an adult in the residence.
The police department has stated that they offer free gun locks to parents, and the spokesman expressed sadness for the family who will be dealing with the aftermath of this tragedy for years to come.
Studies have found that the United States experiences four times as many unintentional gun deaths compared to other high-income countries, and there has been an increase of 43% in deadly unintentional shootings since March 2020 due to the pandemic. Additionally, Everytown for Gun Safety estimates that 4.6 million children live in a home with at least one unlocked and loaded gun.