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STRUTHERS -- An officer is grieving the tragic loss of a grandchild and his department is supporting him the best they can.
Police Chief Tim Roddy on Thursday clarified that it is not his personal conflict of interest that led to the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office taking over the investigation of the shooting death of 3-year-old Gionni Jackson last Friday.
He said it is because the boy is the grandson of one of his officers, whom he requested The Vindicator not name.
Roddy said the officer was in no way involved with the boy's death and is "grieving horribly."
Police said Jackson died from a gunshot wound last week after the boy got hold of an unsecured gun at his home on Spring Street.
"It was a tragedy, no matter who's guilty," Roddy said. "Stupid mistakes happen all the time and, by the grace of God, nobody gets hurt."
Roddy said Thursday that the decision was made after the initial response to turn the case over to another agency to avoid any appearance of impropriety.
"We conferred with the county prosecutor's office earlier this week and we were glad they concurred with us," Roddy said. "We arrived that day, we did our thing, and then we called BCI to come take over, and they asked if the follow-up interviews and the rest of the investigation could be done by the county."
Maj. Jeff Allen of the Mahoning County Sheriff's Office said they have taken over the investigation. Once it is complete, he will submit a report to the Mahoning County Prosecutor's Office and they will determine if any charges are warranted.
The shooting happened in the 400 block of Spring Street at 12:16 p.m. Friday, and the family rushed to take the boy to the emergency room by car, but stopped along South Avenue when he stopped breathing. That was where emergency responders encountered them and tried to save the boy. He was taken to St. Elizabeth Youngstown Hospital, where he died from the wound at about 3 p.m.
The boy's obituary lists Madison Goodin and Jacob Jackson as his parents and states that he was soon to have a little sister named Milani. His funeral Mass is scheduled for 11 a.m. today at Holy Family Church in Poland.