Charges filed against gun owner in July 2014 shooting death of 11-year-old boy in Walworth County

WALWORTH COUNTY (WITI) -- Nearly seven months after a boy was accidentally shot in the head and killed, charges have been filed against the man who owns the gun. Walworth County investigators say two boys were playing with firearms at a Town of Sharon home -- and we're learning just how easy it was for these kids to get their hands on weapons.

According to court documents, there were at least 20 guns in the home. All of them appear to have been left in odd places, like cabinets, cars and a child's bedroom.

Eleven-year-old Eric Gutierrez was shot in the head in a Town of Sharon field. Walworth County Sheriff's deputies say Gutierrez had been playing with a 13-year-old friend at a home off of County Highway K in July 2014.

Gutierrez was pronounced brain dead shortly thereafter.

It appears the boys were playing with a gun taken from a Town of Sharon home. Now, nearly seven months later, the gun owner is facing charges. The 45-year-old man faces a misdemeanor "contributing to the delinquency of a minor" charge, and court documents reveal a shocking number of unlocked firearms in the home.

The gun owner allegedly showed investigators a kitchen cabinet where a .22-caliber pistol with a loaded magazine was kept. There is a shelf behind a door where a similar weapon was stored. A handgun, and at least 12 other firearms were kept in a child's bedroom, court documents say. Deputies say they were in an unlocked safe, and that the boy was allowed access, and that he knew where the key was stored.

The gun owner's mother also kept a handgun in a drawer and his wife kept one in her unlocked car.

There were at least four guns in the barn, as well as ammunition, investigators say.

In total, roughly 20 guns are accounted for by investigators in court documents. A .22-caliber pistol without its safety on and in the "fire" position was found with blood on it on top of a snowmobile. Investigators believe it had been left in a truck the day after the gun owner was mowing the lawn. It is one of the guns the two boys were playing with that cut a young life tragically short.

FOX6 News reached out to the Walworth County District Attorney's Office for comment, but didn't hear back. Walworth County Sheriff Kurt Picknell declined to comment on camera, calling this incident a "tragedy" and a "reminder to everyone to lock up their firearms."

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