CMPD officer charged after 3-year-old son accidentally shot in hand

UNION COUNTY, N.C. — A Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer has been charged after his 3-year-old son was accidentally shot Saturday morning while trying to get his dad a pair of socks from a dresser drawer.

Deputies said 32-year-old Timothy Justin O’Lear asked his son to get him a pair of socks from his bedroom and when the boy opened the drawer, an unsecured 9 mm handgun went off, hitting the toddler in his left hand.

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The child was rushed to Novant Health Matthews Medical Center and is expected to be OK.

According to deputies, O’Lear said he forgot the gun was in the drawer. He said he usually keeps the Sig Sauer P320 X-Five Legion in a locked gun safe but had recently moved it to the sock drawer as an added security measure for his wife while he was at work.

Investigators said all of the evidence suggests that the shooting was an accident.

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O’Lear is CMPD officer. The gun was his personal firearm.

He has been charged with a violation of NC General Statute 14-315.1, the Storage of Firearms to Protect Minors law, which is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

“This incident serves as a reminder of the importance of securing firearms, regardless of who the weapon belongs to,” Union County Sheriff Eddie Cathey said. “It only takes a second for someone to be seriously injured or even worse. We are very thankful this child’s injuries were not life-threatening and we certainly appreciate the full cooperation of Mr. O’Lear and his family but are left with no choice, under the circumstances, to file this charge.”