Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele said Luis Marin left a loaded gun unsecured on his bed.
A Pottstown father is free on bail after being arrested and charged Wednesday by authorities with felony endangering the welfare of a child and reckless endangerment of a person after his 2-year-old son took an unsecured, loaded handgun of a bed and shot himself in his torso.
Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele and Pottstown Police Chief Mick Markovich announced the arrest of Luis Marin, 34, Thursday morning.
Marin, police said, turned himself in to Pottstown Police Wednesday and was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Jody L. Griffis, who set bail at $50,000 unsecured, with a no firearms in the home provision.
Police said on May 15, 2024, shortly before 5 p.m., police were called to Pottstown Hospital for a 2-year-old boy with a gunshot wound. The boy was transferred to Lehigh Valley Hospital, where personnel told police the toddler had been shot, causing broken ribs, a fractured scapula (shoulder blade), and damage to the left lung, police said.
There was also a burn mark and stippling on the boy’s skin, consistent with a gun being pressed against the skin or in very close contact with the skin when the gun was fired, authorities said.
Authorities allege that just before the shooting, Marin went into a bedroom on the second floor of his home to retrieve a crossbody bag to lend to his nephew, and inside that bag were two handguns and ear protection.
Marin removed the guns and ear protection from the bag and placed them on the bed, police said. He then gave the bag to his nephew, who left the home, per the report.
Marin was sitting on the bed, playing on his phone, police allege, when he heard the gunshot, then saw his son was shot. He grabbed the boy and ran outside, applying pressure to the wound, police said.
At the same time, the boy’s mother was arriving home, and they immediately drove to Pottstown Hospital, authorities said.
“This shooting is a frightening reminder to parents that children, even very young children, can and do find unsecured firearms in a home, and their inclination is to play with them,” said Steele. “Thankfully, this 2-year-old boy survived the shooting.”
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Oct. 8 before Magisterial District Judge Edward C. Kropp Sr.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using public court records.
