YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown Police Department continues to investigate the accidental shooting of a boy, 14, Saturday morning in the 200 block of East Lucius Avenue on the South Side.

Capt. Jason Simon, head of the police department’s detective division, said the boy was taken to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital with serious injuries in the 11:30 a.m. incident.

The investigation is ongoing, but so far, it points to negligence, Simon said Tuesday. The police department will not rush the investigation, he said, adding that police are still trying to determine where the teen got the gun.

It was the second incident in a month in the city involving a child and a gun.

De’Vonte Ja’Ton Housely Jr., 7, died Oct. 22 after being shot at a home in the 300 block of Marmion Avenue on the South Side.

Officers began life-saving measures as they arrived, and an ambulance crew transported the boy to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, according to Youngstown police.

Police said they believe the death was accidental.

Youngstown police detective Lt. Mohammad Awad said in a news release: “We have not ruled out other possibilities (besides an accident) and will continue the difficult process of investigating this tragic death. We will also confer with prosecutors down the road regarding possible charges.”

De’Vonte was a second-grader at Youngstown Community School. Educators from the school shared their condolences on social media, recalling the smiles and hugs they received from him daily.

Youngstown police said the two incidents are different, but more needs to be done to prevent such tragedies. Simon said he urges parents to secure their firearms so that they do not get into the hands of children.

De’Vonte’s grandmother, Carla Molina, called De’Vonte’s death “careless” and “preventable.” “He was such a sweet kid, one that didn’t deserve this. No child deserves this,” she said.

Molina said she raised the boy the first six years of his life, but he was placed in his mother’s custody in 2021.

“He had manners, he was respectable and lovable because that’s what I instilled in him,” Molina said, adding she believes her grandson’s life should have and could have been different. “I taught him to walk, how to talk; I taught him to remember his address and his phone number. That was my baby.”

Molina said she believes if he had remained in her care, he would still be alive.

“His father is heartbroken. Every single one of us is not taking it well,” Molina said. Molina said she wants justice for her grandchild and truth of what happened.

“To my grandson, you didn’t die in vain, baby,” Molina said. “Grandma is going to fight until there’s no fight left in her because somebody will be held accountable because that sweet boy should still be here to give me hugs and kisses.”