Cranston dad arrested after accidentally shooting 4-year-old son, police say

CRANSTON, R.I. (WLNE) — A Cranston man who is prohibited from owning a firearm was arrested after allegedly accidentally shooting his 4-year-old son in the head on Tuesday, police said.

According to Chief Michael Winquist, 33-year-old Michael Jones is charged with felony assault, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and firing in a compact area.

Police said that around 10 a.m., the Cranston Fire Department received a 911 call saying that a 4-year-old boy had been shot at a home on Queen Street. The caller, identified as the boy’s grandfather, indicated that the father was responsible for the shooting.

When officers arrived on scene, they said they found Jones holding his son with an apparent gunshot wound to the head. The boy was taken to Hasbro Children’s Hospital, where he remains in critical condition after undergoing emergency surgery.

Officials said that further investigation revealed that Jones was inside a second-floor bedroom of his apartment handling a loaded 9mm handgun. Jones told police he accidentally discharged the gun, causing a single round to travel through the wall and strike his son in the head in an adjacent room.

A search warrant of Jones’ home later led to the discovery of the loaded 9mm handgun that Jones described.

Jones was previously convicted of felony assault on June 1, 2022, and sentenced to a two-year suspended sentence and probation, therefore making him prohibited from owning a gun, police said.

He will prosecuted by the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office for violating his suspended sentence.

How Jones got the gun remains under investigation by the Cranston Police Department.