Heartbreaking Case: 10-Year-Old Boy Faces First-De...

Heartbreaking Case: 10-Year-Old Boy Faces First-Degree Murder Charge After Infant Girl Is Shot Dead

The girl’s 19-year-old father faces charges of second-degree murder and first-degree child endangerment resulting in the death of a child

Charlotte Phillipp
Charlotte Phillipp is a Writer-Reporter at PEOPLE. She has been working at PEOPLE since 2024, and was previously an entertainment reporter at The Messenger.

A St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department vehicle (stock image).Credit : Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty

Police in Missouri have charged a 10-year-old boy with first-degree murder following the shooting death of a 7-month-old girl — and he may be the youngest person charged with murder in the state’s history.

According to the St. Louis Metro Police Department, officers were called to a home on the 8400 block of North Broadway in St. Louis just after 4 p.m. on Friday, June 26, regarding a shooting.

Police at the scene said they located a 7-month-old girl with gunshot wounds, identified as Kiyomi Parker, inside the house. She was quickly rushed to a local hospital, but later died from her injuries.

Detectives alleged that a 10-year-old boy had shot the baby and was taken into juvenile custody.

A view of the 8400 block of North Broadway in St. Louis, where 7-month-old Kiyomi Parker was fatally shot.Google Maps

Police announced on Saturday, June 27, that the boy had been charged with first-degree murder, per First Alert 4, FOX 2 Now and KSDK.

Parker’s father, identified by the outlets as 19-year-old Ca’Marion Pawnell, was charged with second-degree murder, first-degree child endangerment resulting in the death of a child, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child by creating substantial risk.

First Alert 4 reported that the boy appeared to be the youngest child in Missouri’s history to be charged with murder. A 7-year-old child was also present inside the home at the time of the shooting, per the outlet.

Court documents obtained by First Alert 4 and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch state that witnesses at the scene told police that the 10-year-old had picked up the gun and shot the infant.

Investigators said that they learned Pawnell allegedly stored a gun underneath a mattress in the home, and the 10-year-old boy was aware of where the gun was stored.

Per KSDK, according to the probable cause statement, the boy shot the infant in the head.

The boy allegedly told detectives that he knew that the gun would be accessible to him for an extended period of time, state court documents obtained by First Alert 4. He also allegedly told investigators that he had previously taken the gun out from its spot under the mattress.

Pawnell allegedly told investigators that the gun was his and he had placed it underneath the mattress.

Missouri law states that juveniles must be 12 years or older to be certified to stand trial as adults, so the 10-year-old will most likely be charged as a juvenile, according to the Post-Dispatch.

For more information on safe firearm storage and the most effective ways to protect children from unsecured firearms, visit BeSMARTforkids.org.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.