HASTINGS, Neb. (AP) - The mother of a 4-year-old Hastings boy shot to death last month, reportedly by his 9-year-old brother, has been charged with negligent child abuse, as has her live-in boyfriend.
The Adams County Attorney’s Office filed charges Thursday against the 29-year-old woman and her 30-year-old boyfriend, the Hastings Tribune reported (https://bit.ly/1jMHXHW ).
The Associated Press generally does not identify juveniles accused of crimes. For that reason, the AP is not naming the adults or children involved in the case.
Authorities say police, school and mental health officials had concerns about the 9-year-old’s often violent behavior that included killing and harming cats, attacking and threatening other students and threating to kill his mother.
Prosecutors have said the boy shot a rifle that killed his 4-year-old brother the morning of April 18. The older boy has been charged with juvenile manslaughter. That charge will not lead to jail or prison time. Rather, officials will seek treatment to alter the child’s behavior.
All files and documents in the boy’s case have been sealed and his hearings closed because the case is being treated as a mental health issue.
But documents in the adults’ cases are public record.
One arrest affidavit says officials had warned the mother and her boyfriend for weeks before the shooting to lock up all knives and other sharp items and to have no guns in the house.
One official said the mother didn’t see the urgency in securing those items and made excuses for not locking them up, such as needing knives for cooking. Police say they found six firearms and ammunition - none of which had been locked up and were easily accessible - after the shooting.
Officials also reported that the mother failed to keep several appointments with mental health officials in the weeks before the shooting.
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Information from: Hastings Tribune, https://www.hastingstribune.com
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