Louisiana boy accidentally shot in school after gun falls from backpack, investigators say

A gun dropped out of a student's backpack in Moss Bluff Elementary School on Monday, accidentally discharging and striking another boy in the classroom. (Google Street View)

A 7-year-old boy was accidentally shot in a Louisiana elementary school Monday morning after a student picked up a gun that fell out of another child's backpack, investigators said.

A student was carrying the gun in his backpack when it fell out in a classroom at Moss Bluff Elementary School, Calcasieu Parish Sheriff Tony Mancuso said. Another child picked up the gun and it discharged, striking the 7-year-old boy who was standing nearby.

The boy was taken to the hospital and was in surgery as of Monday afternoon.

Officials said they would decide later whether to press charges against the parents of the student who bought the gun to school.

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The children involved in the incident will not be held criminally responsible, Mancuso said.

It's unclear why the student brought the gun to school.

Calcasieu Parish is a three-hour drive west of New Orleans.