DETROIT (AP) - Police are investigating accidental shootings in Detroit and Houston that were livestreamed on social media and that left a teenager dead and a man on life support.
Detroit police say two 18-year-olds were live on Instagram Saturday night showing money and a gun when one of them shot the other in the back of the head, killing him. Police say the teen who fired the gun told investigators he accidentally put his finger on the trigger and that the rifle discharged. He was taken into custody.
The victim died before paramedics arrived at the home, which is on Detroit’s northwest side.
Police haven’t released the names of the shooter or the victim.
In Houston, a 25-year-old woman shot a male acquaintance early Sunday while waving a handgun inside of a parked car. The shooting, which police are treating as accidental, was streamed on Facebook live.
The victim, identified by family members as Devyn Holmes, was sitting in the car when he was hit. He was hospitalized but is brain dead and on life support, authorities said.
In the video, Cassandra Damper can be seen waving the handgun while Holmes tells her, “Hey man, you’re making me nervous.”
An unidentified third person in the vehicle, a man, is heard saying, “She got no clip bud,” a reference to the lack of an ammunition clip in the gun. But seconds later, the gun fires, hitting Holmes on the side of his head. A gun without an ammunition clip can still fire if there was a bullet in the gun’s chamber, though police are still investigating and haven’t said that was the case in Holmes’ shooting.
Damper has been charged with tampering/fabricating evidence. Authorities say she tried to wipe off any gunshot residue she might have had on her hands.
Court records didn’t list an attorney for Damper, who is free on $2,500 bond.
The case will be referred to a grand jury for possible additional charges.
It is unclear how many people, if any, were watching the livestreams when the shootings happened.
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This story has been corrected to reflect that the Detroit shooting happened Monday night, not Saturday night.
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