Boy, 5, accidentally shoots self in Woodlawn

CHICAGO - A man was arrested after his 5-year-old son accidentally shot himself Friday with a gun he found in his father’s pocket in Woodlawn on the South Side.

The boy found the gun in his father’s pocket just after midnight while his parents slept in their home on Drexel Avenue, Chicago police said. He took the gun to the bathroom, where it accidentally went off, striking him in the hand.

The boy was taken to Comer Children’s Hospital in good condition, police said. His father tried to flee the home but was arrested in the 6100 block of South State Street after officers noticed his vehicle.

The father admitted to leaving the home “in a panic to discard the weapon” after officers found his gun in some grass nearby, police said. It was not immediately known if he has a valid FOID card or concealed-carry license.

Charges are pending, police said.

Area Central detectives are investigating.