Police say boy’s fatal shooting was accidental

CLINTON, Okla. (AP) – Police in western Oklahoma say the fatal shooting of an 8-year-old boy appears to have been an accident.

Clinton Police Chief Paul Rinkel said Sunday officers discovered the child about 3:30 p.m. Saturday after they were called to a residence in Clinton, about 82 miles west of Oklahoma City.

Rinkel says officers found the boy in a bedroom of the home with a gunshot wound in the chest. The child was declared dead at the scene. He was not identified.

Rinkel says a handgun was discovered in the room where officers found the boy. Rinkel declined to discuss other details of the investigation but says it appears the shooting “may have been a tragic accident.”

The state Medical Examiner’s Office will determine the cause and manner of death.