17-year-old boy shot, killed during Russian roulette game
CARSON, Calif. >> A 17-year-old boy shot and killed himself early Monday during what authorities are describing as a game of Russian roulette in his apartment with other teens.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies responding to a call about a gunshot in an unincorporated area between Los Angeles and Carson found the boy with a wound to the head. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The boy initiated the game after producing a .38-caliber revolver, despite the pleading of two others in the bedroom not to, according to sheriff’s investigators. Russian roulette involves loading a single chamber of a revolver, spinning the cylinder and squeezing the trigger after putting the gun to one’s head.
Family members in the apartment at the time of the shooting just after midnight told authorities they did not realize the teen had a gun. The boy, who was not identified, was living with his older brother and the brother’s wife.
Authorities say the death has been ruled accidental and they do not expect charges.