NORTHEAST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) – Investigators have revealed what led to the fatal shooting of a 11-year-old boy in a Northeast Miami-Dade apartment complex: he was accidentally shot by an older brother.
According to Miami-Dade Police, Shemarion Burse was inside an apartment unit at the Horizons West complex with his four siblings, ages 9 to 15, Thursday afternoon. No adults were home.
Detectives said Burse’s 13-year-old brother removed a gun from a firearm case in the master bedroom closet. While the older sibling was handling the weapon, it went off and struck Burse in the chest.
Speaking with 7News on Friday, the children’s next-door neighbor described what she heard.
“I heard a noise, and then I heard kids screaming, ‘Help,’” said the neighbor, who asked not to be identified.
The neighbor, who was home with her young daughter, said she immediately rushed over to help.
“I called 911. I went inside the house. The baby was there, blood everywhere,” she said.
The neighbor said she tried to resuscitate Burse.
“I proceeded to do CPR, mouth-to-mouth, until he stopped breathing, and that’s when I just stopped,” she said.
Paramedics airlifted the victim to Ryder Trauma Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Speaking with reporters Thursday evening, MDPD detective Alvaro Zabaleta confirmed Burse’s mother is a Miami-Dade Corrections officer.
The children’s mother, Tiffany Callaway, described Burse as “the light of our life” on a GoFundMe page that she created. She goes on to write, “I can tell you he was an amazing young boy. Loving, playful and always there to put a smile on your face when you needed.”
As loved ones mourn their loss, their next-door neighbor said she is also processing the sudden tragedy.
“Blood on the wall, him just laying there, taking his last breath, and it was just traumatic. I was nervous, I was in shock, but I was just trying to help, honestly, because I have a concealed weapon, I have kids, so I know the panic, the scaredness,” she said. “I related to that moment. I just acted like he was my family member.”
Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation spokesperson Juan Diasgranados released a statement that reads in part, “At this time, we would request privacy for the family in an effort to show respect for the family’s needs and allow them to mourn in private.”
Burse’s mother set up the GoFundMe page to help cover funeral expenses. She wrote, “As a mother, I am pleading with you to help me bury my baby. This is the very last thing I can do for him and I’m hoping you all can help.”
Police have not specified who the owner of the gun is.
No charges are expected to be filed.
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