A 5-year-old girl is dead after she was accidentally shot by her 5-year-old friend during a play date at a home in Idaho on Wednesday.
Chubbuck police said the children were in a room separate from the adults when the shooting occurred, the Associated Press reported. Emergency responders arrived at the home at around 3 p.m. and rushed 5-year-old Noelle Shawver to Portneuf Medical Center in Pocatello. She was pronounced dead that evening.
It is not yet clear if the children were playing at the victim's home or the home of the 5-year-old boy. Police have not said how the boy came into possession of the loaded weapon, the AP reported.
Noelle's family said the girl was to start kindergarten this fall in her hometown of Blackfoot.
"She was perfect in every way you know," the victim's aunt, Kaeley Shawver, told KPVI-TV. "She is just a beautiful little girl to be around all the time and we are going to miss her smiling face."
Shawver also said their family has no animosity towards the family of the 5-year-old boy.
"It's pure accident, so there is no point of holding any hard feelings towards them, especially when they are good friends," she told the station.
A GoFundMe page was set up to help the victim's parents, Drew and Stacie Shawver, raise money for funeral expenses. They have raised over $21,000 as of Friday.
Police have not released any other details about the shooing as they investigate, the AP reported.
