Coweta County

Mother turns self in after toddler injures sister with gun

COWETA COUNTY, Ga. — The mother of a toddler who shot his sister at a restaurant turned herself in Saturday morning.

Jennifer Cotton, 31, was being held at the Coweta County jail on a charge of reckless conduct.

She had her first court appearance Saturday morning and was released on a $2,500 bond.

Investigators said Cotton was out to eat with her three children -- an infant, a 2-year-old boy and an 11-year old girl at No. 1 China Buffett in Newnan last Sunday afternoon.

Police said her 2-year-old son unzipped her purse, pulled out a 9mm handgun and fired it inside the restaurant.

The gun did not have a safety feature on it, investigators said.

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The shot drove a screw from the gun holster into the leg of the toddler's sister.

The 11-year-old had surgery to remove the screw and is expected to recover.

Cotton's attorney said her gun practices are not a danger to her children.

"He was being watched, was being supervised. It's one of those things that can just happen so quickly and, again, was a freak accident that you do not hear about because it does not happen," attorney Jason W. Swindle Sr. said.

Swindle said the parents do not have a criminal past or any record of gun-related accidents.

"This could have been much worse, obviously. It was by the grace of God that something didn't happen," he said.