Boy, 3, shoots himself in neck

TAMPA -- A 3-year-old boy was in critical condition after shooting himself in the neck with his father's handgun, police said.

Quinn Burchfield was watching television with his sisters, Britney, 11, and Hannah, 8, when the accident happened about 7:30 p.m. Monday at their home at 4426 W Bay Ave. His parents were in the kitchen.

Tampa police spokesman Joe Durkin said the boy's father, Steven Burchfield, 33, had left his .32-caliber, semiautomatic handgun inside his jeans, which lay on a dresser in the room.

The boy found the gun and began playing with it. His sisters couldn't get to him before he pulled the trigger, Durkin said.

He fired one bullet, which lodged in his neck.

Durkin said the family called 911, took the child outside and waited for an ambulance.

Emergency workers, detectives and news crews descended on the quiet neighborhood near Robinson High School.

"My son plays over there all the time," said neighbor John Richmond, shaking his head. "He plays over there, and there's a gun in the house."

While the boy's mother and sisters went with Quinn to Tampa General Hospital, Steven Burchfield stayed behind to answer questions from detectives.

Durkin said Burchfield had a concealed weapons permit but could face charges. The law requires that firearms be "securely encased" or "otherwise not readily accessible for immediate use."

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