Baton Rouge Mother Arrested After Child Found With Gunshot Wound

Arieana Scott's 4-year-old son is in critical condition after the child gained access to an illegal firearm modified with a "Glock switch."

A Louisiana mother was taken into custody after her 4-year-old child gained access to a firearm and inadvertently shot himself on the morning of March 20.

Authorities arrested 22-year-old Arieana Scott after an investigation found her young son obtained an illegally modified handgun. The child is in critical condition at a local hospital.

According to WBRZ, Scott, who has been booked into East Baton Rouge Prison, faces multiple charges, including improper parental supervision of a minor, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession with intent to distribute Schedule I narcotics, possession of a firearm in proximity to controlled substances and possession of a machine gun.

The arrest affidavit revealed the mother claimed she was in her bedroom when a loud noise went off inside the home. She disregarded it and went back to sleep. She called out for her child shortly after she woke up, but the boy was unresponsive, lying in a pool of blood.

In her initial statement, Scott allegedly denied any knowledge of the handgun’s presence due to her prior felony record. However, under persistent interrogation, she ultimately confessed that the firearm had been in her bedroom closet. She was reportedly puzzled as to how her child obtained it.

Allegedly, the 4-year-old was playing with a gun that Baton Rouge Police Chief “TJ” Morse told WBRZ was illegally modified with a “Glock switch,” “a conversion switch attached to it which would make it an automatic weapon.” The outlet reported that Glock switches, which are capable of rapid fire, were made illegal by the state in 2023.

Morse said his team of officers were the first on the scene and started rendering medical aid as soon as they found the child in the bed, working until EMTs arrived.

According to the Baton Rouge Police Department, the shooting incident occurred at approximately 9:27 a.m. on March 20 at 2212 69th Avenue.