HOUSTON – Deputies are investigating after they said a man was accidentally shot and killed by a family friend while relaxing in bed in northwest Harris County Tuesday.
Deputies said it happened at a home near Laurel Creek Drive and Laurel Arbor Drive around 11:25 p.m. The person who accidentally pulled the trigger was a family friend, investigators said.
Investigators said Norez Hargrove, who’s been staying with the victim, was examining a gun in the living room when it went off. The bullet went through the wall, into the master bedroom, through a T.V. and struck the victim, who has been identified as Gerald Peavy, 48, deputies said.
Deputies said Peavy’s wife was in the room with him when it happened and the family friend was taken in for questioning.
Homicide investigators said they interviewed Hargrove, who was visiting the family. Investigators said Hargrove told them he located a firearm inside the residence after the family went to bed. Deputies said the man assumed the firearm was not loaded, pulled the trigger, and shot the weapon.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office said manslaughter charges are pending against Hargrove.
Anyone with information on this case is asked to contact the Harris County Sheriff’s Office Homicide Unit at 713-274-9100.