According to the Bartow County Sheriff's Office incident report and Sgt. Jonathan Rogers, authorities responded about 10:45 a.m. to the Manning Mill Way home, and the father said he had left a loaded, safety-locked .22 rifle in the garage propped against a wall.
Prior to the shooting, four children, ages 4 and 7, were playing outside. When it began to rain, the children went inside the garage.
The father reported hearing a gunshot and saw his son running upstairs with blood coming out of his right arm. One of the children was playing with the gun when if went off.
The injured boy was transported via ambulance to Gordon County Hospital and treated for the injury, which authorities say is believed to be non-life threatening.
The bullet apparently hit a garage door, and deputies found the gun lying on the ground near the door.
Home ransacked, $7,000 in property taken
Burglars sometime between Saturday at 3 p.m. and Monday shortly after midnight ransacked an Acworth home, cutting the power and taking more than $7,000 in property.
According to the BCSO incident report, the owner arrived home from work and noticed his back door open and the power off.
Deputies discovered the home ransacked -- drawers and cabinets were opened or pulled out, and papers and clothing were strewn across the floor and a mattress pulled off the bed frame.
A bedroom window appeared to be the point of entry, and an outside power meter was pulled from the wall. More than $7,000 in electronics and other items, including a firearm and microphone, were taken.