What happens legally when a 13 year accidentally shoots and kills her brother

[snailslime]

I'm writing a story and a key moment in my protagonist's backstory is when she was thirteen and accidentally shot her twin brother in the head during a hunting trip with their father. I was thinking about having her get sent to some sort of juvenile correction/mental health facility until she turns eighteen, but I wasn't sure if this was accurate to how United States law works regarding these types of situations. Also, would any sort of serious legal repercussions be unrealistic given this would be something that happens within the family, and if so, would it work better if the brother was instead the child of a family friend? Any info would be helpful!

Comments

[full_metal_ox]

Welcome to Dreamwidth; I hope this comm and the platform provide what you’re looking for!

To begin with, what race and socioeconomic class are we talking? That’ll have a huge impact.

[altamira16]

This would be fine in the US. It's an accident, and no one would got to jail.

[voidampersand]

Even when there aren't legal penalties, there are lots of repercussions.

It would be a very traumatic experience. Losing a twin would hurt. Knowing it's your fault would only make it worse.

The father would also feel that he was responsible. Did he fail to properly train his children about gun safety? Did he fail to supervise them when the accident occurred? He lost a son and his daughter is probably mentally scarred for life. It's devastating.

Because there was a death, the authorities must be involved. You can pretty much guarantee that all of them will be upset about the accident, whether they admit it or not.

This reminds me of a police officer who would take his son along with him on calls. He responded to an auto accident. It was bad. Afterwards, he said he really should not have taken his son along.

[topaz_eyes]

There would likely be a police investigation to determine the circumstances surrounding the death, and to determine whether the shooting was accidental or intentional.

In which US state is the story set? As a minor, your protag could be charged with causing the death of another person whether it was intentional or not, depending on the outcome of the investigation. In some states she may be charged as an adult, so the location is important.

[fairyniamh]

She would be detained by the police while they investigate the incident. If they think she could be a danger to herself or others she would be held in a hospital and guarded by an officer. This way medical staff could assist with assessing her mental health.

Overall, they would release her to a place/person she would feel safe and cared for.

[kate_nepveu]

if you need her to be incarcerated then it needs to be not an accident or something that a number of people could agree or go along with not being an accident, I'm afraid.

[akinoame]

So like everyone said, if it's an accident, then she's not going to be put in any kind of facility.

However, there is the possibility of reckless endangerment. For instance, if she (and maybe her brother) were goofing off and not doing what they were supposed to and as a result, her gun went off and the bullet hit her brother.

This resource is based off of Indiana state law, but it does bring up a gun-related example: shooting into the air where the bullets can hit someone when they land. This will vary by state, and you'd have to do some research on how things would go for a child charge.

Check the American Bar Association, since they have a state-by-state listing of resources for free legal aid, although it looks like you probably have to have an actual case that you're looking for advice on.

There's also Justia's Ask a Lawyer, where you can post a question and Bar-licensed attorneys will answer. Just again, know what state you're setting this in. Things will vary.

[melannen]

What everyone else says about about her being incarcerated by the law. However, it's not at all uncommon for a kid to have psychological problems and/or a family to fall apart after an incident like that, and if you need her to have been imprisoned separate from her family during her teen years, the US has a whole lamentable industry of "boarding schools for troubled youth". Many of them are essentially private juvenile detention facilities where kids can be shipped off by parents who can't or don't want to deal with them. (A lot of them are also notorious for all different kids of abuse.) So that's certainly an option; an upper middle class white cop's family is exactly the sort of family that might consider than if the kid was traumatized and acting out and the marriage was falling apart. The trouble teen industry wikipedia page is a starting point if you think that might be a route to go: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troubled_teen_industry