Three-year-old Holston David Cole died on the morning of April 26, 2016, at his family’s home on Camp Circle in Dallas, Georgia, after finding a loaded .380 semi-automatic pistol that belonged to his father and shooting himself in the chest. Emergency responders arrived around 7 a.m.; his mother, a registered nurse, and sheriff’s deputies performed CPR before he was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An autopsy described the wound as accidental and self-inflicted.

The Paulding County Sheriff’s Office investigated how the father stored the firearm, which had been in the father’s backpack, and consulted with the District Attorney’s Office. Investigators declined to file criminal charges, saying the death was a freak accident and noting there was no evidence of criminal intent. The family, active at West Ridge Church, held funeral services there. If anyone knew the family or has information about the circumstances, please share what you can.