A man, already on probation over a 2011 accidental shooting that killed a teenager, was arrested after a 9-year-old girl in his care was shot by another child Saturday.
Dustin Adkins, 34, of Titusville, Florida, faces charges of aggravated child neglect with great bodily harm and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.
According to WOFL-TV in Orlando, Adkins was shooting target practice with four children in a wooded area on Saturday when he left the children alone to check a hog trap. While he was gone, one of the children accidentally fired a gun and shot a 9-year-old girl.
WOFL reports that the injured girl is Adkins' daughter.
Police say Adkins hid the guns in the brush and behind an old tire and drove the child to a hospital across town.
"Instead of calling 911 — which could've met an ambulance being sent there or him being advised to go to the fire station a mile-and-a-half away — he chose to transport the victim himself, in his own vehicle, to a hospital on the other side of the city," Titusville Police Deputy Chief Todd Hutchinson told WOFL.
The child remained in critical condition as of Monday afternoon, according to Florida Today.
At the time of the shooting, Adkins was still on probation for the 2011 shooting death of 13-year-old Kasey Canada. Adkins accidentally fired a gun through the wall of his home while showing off a handgun, killing the teenager. He pleaded guilty to a manslaughter charge and served prison time.
According to WOFL, Adkins is not allowed to own a gun as part of his probation. Police told WOFL that they are investigating how the guns in Saturday's incident came into his possession.
Adkins remains in jail, awaiting trial without bond.
Alex Hider is a writer for the E.W. Scripps National Desk. Follow him on Twitter @alexhider.
