Mitchell "DJ" Maxwell, 11, Shot & Killed with Pellet Gun At Coach's House During Sleepover

Mitchell "D.J." Maxwell, 11, was shot and killed by a teammate with a .177-caliber pellet gun during a sleepover at their coach's house. Felicia Thomas, the boy's mother, said in an interview with WSB-TV, that he sixth-grade son was at a sleepover with two other boys at the coach's home when he was shot. Ware County (Ga.) Sheriff Randy Royal said the three boys were playing a PlayStation 3 video game when one of the boys picked up what he thought was an unloaded pellet rifle and pretended to shoot it, then handed it to a 12-year-old who apparently shot Maxwell in the chest from point-blank range. After trying to stop the bleeding themselves, the children notified two adults watching television in the next room that Maxwell was hurt, but did not immediately say he had been shot. This begs the question of why this gun was lying around carelessly for a child to find? The 12-year old child that fired the gun is old enough to know that was dangerous and you shouldn't play with guns, period.

According to the police report, the paramedics didn't know the boy had been shot until they got to the hospital. They thought he was having an asthma attack. In the 911 calls, the caller told the operator the boy was gasping for air and that he had a history of asthma. "He's unresponsive but he's breathing," one of the callers told 911. "Do you know if he has a history of asthma or anything?" the 911 operator asked.

"He's one of my football players, and his cousin's here now and says he does have asthma," the caller said. An autopsy was scheduled to be performed on Monday at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's Savannah office. Royal said the case remains under investigation and the results would be turned over to the district attorney's office for review and any further action. Source: WSB-TV

These boys are old enough to know that you do not play with any type of gun, much less pull the trigger. Where was the adult supervision of these children? I am also amazed that the paramedics did not realize the child was bleeding and the adults in the home did not alert them that a child was shot. Seems like this case warrants a serious investigation because too many people seem to have dropped the ball.

Photo credit: Mitchell Maxwell, WSB-TV