11-year-old charged with manslaughter in death of 14-year-old friend

LAKE CITY, Fla. — An 11-year-old Florida boy accused of shooting and killing his 14-year-old friend was arrested and charged with manslaughter Friday.

Detectives in Columbia County, Florida, obtained the arrest warrant for 11-year-old Carter Palm on Thursday.

[READ: 14-year-old boy shot, killed in friend's Lake City home]

According to deputies, 14-year-old Jadon Vaughn was visiting the home of Palm and his brother the day after Christmas. The adults had left for the evening, leaving the children at the home. Officials say Vaughn and Palm began wrestling to see if Palm's dog would respond to Vaughn attacking Palm.

After wrestling, deputies say Palm retrieved a pistol from his parent's bedroom, removed the magazine and pointed it at Vaughn.

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The gun discharged and killed Vaughn, according to the report.

Palm called his father and told him that Vaughn had come at him with a knife. Palm and his 13-year-old brother admitted to placing a kitchen knife near Vaughn after shooting him, believing that they would be in less trouble, according to the report.

Palm was taken into custody without incident on the charge of manslaughter and is currently in juvenile detention in Gainesville, according to the Columbia County Sheriff's Office.

“This is a tragic and avoidable death,” Sheriff Mark Hunter said. “Our hearts are broken for both families; one has lost a son and the other will struggle with these events for the rest of their lives. To honor Jadon, I want to stress the importance of securing your firearms so a child cannot get to them!”

The case is active and ongoing.

Cox Media Group