Ellsworth County parents are facing felony charges connected to the spring deaths of two children after a sibling shot them with a loaded, unsecured shotgun in a rural home, KSAL reports. The Ellsworth County Attorney filed the charges following a death investigation led by the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) and the Ellsworth County Sheriff’s Office.
KBI says 37-year-old Aaron French and 28-year-old Makayla French of Brookville were issued a summons to appear in district court on July 28 on four counts of aggravated endangering a child. The counts include two level 6 felonies and two level 9 felonies tied to the deaths of their 8-year-old and 5-year-old children.
The investigation determined that on Saturday, March 28, a young child found the loaded, unsecured shotgun in the home and shot and killed two siblings. Around 3:15 p.m., a caller reported a shooting south of the intersection of Kansas Highway 141 and Ave. N, and multiple agencies responded, including the Ellsworth County Sheriff’s Office, Kansas Highway Patrol, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks game wardens, and EMS.
A 5-year-old child was pronounced deceased at the scene after critical injuries, while an 8-year-old child was flown to a Wichita hospital and later died, KSAL reports.
Ellsworth County prosecutors file felony charges after deaths tied to unsecured shotgun
