A 10-year-old boy has been charged with first-degree murder after a seven-month-old girl was fatally shot in St. Louis, Missouri, on Saturday, June 20, police said.
The child, who has not been named due to his age, told investigators he found a gun under a mattress in a bedroom and shot baby Kiyomi Pawnell-Parker in the head, according to a probable cause statement cited by KSDK. Officers transported Kiyomi to a nearby hospital, but she could not be saved.
Kiyomi’s 19-year-old father, Ca’Marion Pawnell, was also arrested. He faces charges of second-degree murder, first-degree child endangerment resulting in death, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child by creating substantial risk, court records show.
Police said Pawnell told them he owned the gun and had kept it under the mattress. Investigators allege the 10-year-old knew where it was stored and had handled it before. A seven-year-old was also present in the home at the time. Pawnell is being held without bond. Authorities have not disclosed his relationship to the other two children.
Kiyomi’s mother, Janyla Parker, launched a GoFundMe to help cover funeral and related expenses. “At just 19 years old, I never imagined I would be planning my seven-month-old daughter’s funeral instead of watching her grow,” Parker wrote. She described the death as an “unimaginable loss” and thanked donors for “helping me give my beautiful baby the farewell she deserves.”
Parker’s posts said Pawnell is a recent graduate of East St. Louis High School in Illinois who had been preparing for college, according to a statement shared by his sister on social media.
