Mom charged after 8-year-old boy shot while playing with gun

A West Side mother has been charged after her 8-year-old son was accidentally shot Tuesday morning while he and another child were playing with a gun inside the family’s apartment in the North Lawndale neighborhood.

Micquelyn Biles, 31, faces one felony count of unlawful use of a weapon by a felon and one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child, according to a statement from Chicago Police.

About 10:45 a.m. Tuesday, Biles’ son and another child, both 8 years old, found a handgun inside the apartment in the 3700 block of West 13th Street, police said.

While the children were playing with the gun, it accidentally discharged one time, striking Biles’ son in the abdomen, police said.

A family member brought the boy to the emergency room at Mount Sinai Hospital, where he was listed in good condition, police said.

Biles, a convicted felon, initially told authorities she didn’t know the weapon was in her home, but further investigation revealed the gun belonged to her boyfriend and that she was lying, police said.

As of early Thursday, the boyfriend was not in custody as the shooting remains under investigation.

Biles is scheduled to appear in bond court Thursday. Court records show she pleaded guilty to forgery charges in 2003 and was sentenced to 18 months of probation.