NY judge drops charges against boy who accidentally shot 15-year-old cousin

A boy charged with manslaughter and other crimes after accidentally shooting and killing his 15-year-old cousin will no longer be prosecuted after a Brooklyn family court judge ruled the boy — who was 12 during the shooting — shouldn’t be held responsible for an adult’s failure to store a gun safely.

The decision ends the legal case against the child. But the tragedy continues to haunt him: He’s now plagued by post-traumatic stress disorder and thoughts of suicide, according to the ruling. The case raises questions about who should be held accountable when a young person unintentionally shoots someone with an adult’s firearm — and whether justice is possible when the shooting causes serious harm or death.

“This court believes that it is manifestly unjust where the tragic events of this situation commenced with the incredibly irresponsible lapse in judgment by an adult that the only person who should take the fall is the 12-year-old,” Judge Alan Beckoff wrote in the ruling.

The boy’s parents declined to comment through an attorney. The parents of the teen who was killed did not respond to requests for comment.

On June 2, 2024, 15-year-old Jasai Guy was in his Brownsville apartment with his then-12-year-old cousin. Guy’s father was out of town and the boys found a shotgun under his bed, according to the judge's ruling and news reports from the time. When the 12-year-old tried to put the gun down, it went off, he later told police.

“I shot my cousin by accident,” he said, according to court papers.

Officers found Guy lying still on a couch with a chest wound, the ruling states. He was pronounced dead at Brookdale Hospital.

Officials brought a juvenile delinquency case against the 12-year-old in family court, accusing him of second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, criminal possession of a weapon and other crimes. The boy's attorney asked the judge to dismiss the case, arguing it would be unjust to keep pursuing the charges.

New York family court judges are allowed to dismiss charges “in furtherance of justice” even when the evidence suggests the person committed a crime. They first have to consider a handful of factors, including the seriousness of the crime, the extent of harm caused, the need for community safety and the best interest of the defendant.

Beckoff said in his ruling there was no dispute the child committed a serious crime that caused “extensive harm.” But he said the child had no history of arrests and many people in his community have attested to his good character.

The judge also said a psychological assessment found the boy was experiencing symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder and would benefit from mental health treatment. Additional court proceedings, the psychologist said, would worsen his post-traumatic stress and suicidal thoughts.

Beckoff cited a “disturbingly similar” case in Brooklyn family court from 1993, when a young person identified as Tristan C. accidentally shot and killed his cousin after they found an adult’s loaded gun under a mattress. In that case, the judge wrote, the court dismissed the charges so Tristan could receive mental health treatment for depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Beckoff said “there is no shortage of medical literature” that has identified how brain development affects young people’s ability to make responsible decisions and control their impulses, particularly when it comes to firearms.

“The principle known as Chekhov's gun is keenly illustrated by a 12-year-old holding a loaded Mossberg 12-gauge pump action sawed-off shotgun — at some point the gun is going to go off,” the judge wrote.

‘People never think about these things potentially happening to them or their families’

Nationwide, there have been at least 103 unintentional shootings in 2025, according to data collected by the nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund.

Four of those shootings — two of them fatal — were in New York, according to the data. Last year, there were at least 11 accidental shootings in the state, including Guy’s, the data shows.

No adult was charged in connection with Guy’s death. Beckoff’s ruling cited news stories from after the shooting that reported Guy’s father had left the gun under a bed.

Oren Yaniv, a spokesperson for the Brooklyn district attorney’s office, said police never arrested Guy’s father in connection with the shooting, so prosecutors didn’t receive the case. An attorney representing the father did not respond to phone messages.

Guy was a “burning source of all things radiant and positive,” his loved ones said in an obituary after his death. The memorial described him as an athlete, an artist and a straight-A student who dreamed of playing basketball and studying law at a historically Black college.

“Jasai played with the heart of a champion, dribbling through challenges, scoring baskets of success and leaving an undeniable mark on the court of our memories,” the obituary reads. “As the final buzzer sounds, Jasai will forever rest in the Hall of Fame of our hearts.”

Parents do sometimes face criminal charges when their child dies or kills someone else, according to Monu Bedi, a professor at DePaul University College of Law. He published a paper last year in the Cardozo Law Review about parents being held accountable for a shooting committed by their child.

Courts have found parents have a duty to protect their kids and are sometimes prosecuted when their actions could have contributed to a child’s death, Bedi said. Those cases might involve malnutrition, refusing medical treatment or exposing a child to another adult who the parent knew posed a danger, he said.

Bedi noted prosecutors could charge a parent in a case like this, when a gun was left unattended and a child accidentally shot it. But he said pursuing such a case would require evidence that the parent knew or should have known there was a substantial risk that someone would find the gun and shoot it.

“I’m not sure it’s an easy case to prove,” he said.

Bedi also said it’s common for prosecutors to use their discretion and not pursue charges against a parent whose child has died, since they’re already in the midst of a tragedy.

New York law requires gun owners to safely store rifles, shotguns and other firearms if they live with someone under 18. Violating the law is a class A misdemeanor.

David Pucino, legal director at the Giffords Law Center, said parents often wrongly assume their kids don’t know where their guns are.

“People never think about these things potentially happening to them or their families, but it’s a real risk,” he said. “If you bring a firearm into your home, it’s your responsibility to store it safely.”

Dana Rachlin, executive director of the nonprofit We Build the Block, works with children in Brooklyn who are victims and perpetrators of violence. As a crime victim herself, she said, she advocates for mercy. She said the judge’s decision in this case focused on the facts and science, rather than being overly punitive.

“This kid took somebody’s life, and there’s nothing we can say about that. Somebody died,” she said. “And it’s the true test of our values and the spirit of the law.”