A 2-year-old boy was accidentally shot and killed by his 4-year-old cousin on Sunday while on a family vacation in Kissimmee, Florida. The trip was intended to celebrate the toddler's third birthday. The incident occurred just before 4 p.m. within a vehicle where the two children had been left unattended.
The Osceola County Sheriff's Office stated that the older cousin picked up an unsecured, unholstered handgun inside the car and the weapon discharged, striking the younger boy, Brayden Tennyson. Brayden was transported to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando, where he was later pronounced dead. The family had traveled from Louisville, Georgia, to the Cove East at Storey Lake rental community for the celebration, which would have occurred on Tuesday.
"There are no words to describe the heartbreak our family is experiencing," a relative wrote on a GoFundMe fundraiser established to help return Brayden's body to Georgia. "What was meant to be a joyful vacation to Orlando to celebrate sweet Brayden’s 3rd birthday has turned into an unimaginable tragedy."
According to investigators, the firearm belonged to Brayden's mother and was left inside the vehicle while the adults were outside checking into their rental property. Family members heard the gunshot from inside the car and immediately discovered what had happened. One family member was taken to the hospital for chest pains due to the extreme distress caused by the event.
Brayden's sister described him as a "very smart" and