On March 31, 2018, 7-year-old Jermon Perry died after an accidental shooting at his home in the 3100 block of California Avenue in St. Louis. The children were on the second floor hunting for Easter candy while their parents were downstairs when one of the boys found a handgun. Jermon’s 5-year-old brother picked up the firearm believing it was a toy; while Jermon was playing a video game the gun discharged and a single shot struck him in the head.

Emergency crews found him barely conscious and breathing; he was taken to a local hospital in critical condition and died later that night. The handgun belonged to Jermon’s father, Jericho Perry, who legally owned it and held a license to carry. St. Louis homicide detectives investigated how the children accessed the weapon and the supervision at the time; initial reports said no charges had been filed.

Did anyone in the neighborhood see or hear anything that afternoon or know more about how the firearm was stored?