THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, December 1, 1994 TAG: 9412010433
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B8 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Short : 38 lines
A man whose 9-year-old stepson fatally shot himself with the man's shotgun has been charged with felony child neglect.
Mark Agee, 24, was arrested for what police contend was willful neglect of the safety of Billy Bridges.
``The shotgun was in the master bedroom,'' police spokesman Bill Roth said Monday. ``The rounds were not in the weapon, but the stepfather had recently shown the boy how to load and unload the weapon.''
Police have ruled that the Sept. 14 shooting was accidental, but they have no explanation for why Billy was handling the shotgun.
Billy's mother, Christina Agee, arrived home to find her son motionless on the floor and bleeding from a shotgun wound. When paramedics arrived, the youngster was pronounced dead.
Roth said Billy was killed on the first day he had been allowed to go home after school, rather than to a babysitter's house. He attended Carver Elementary School.
The day was a Wednesday, and Newport News elementary schools have been letting children out early on Wednesdays so teachers can have more planning time. The schedule change has angered some parents who said they have problems finding someone to watch their youngsters after school.
Agee and Billy's mother had recently married. Agee, contacted Tuesday in Chesapeake, refused to comment on the charge.
Neighbors said the Agees moved shortly after Billy's death.
KEYWORDS: GUN JUVENILE FATALITY FELONY CHILD NEGLECT SHOOTING by CNB