A Deltona woman was arrested Monday after her 3-year-old son was able to get a hold of her loaded gun and fire it in a school parking lot, deputies said.

  • Boy, 3, grabbed loaded gun and fired in parking lot
  • The boy's mother was charged with felony child neglect
  • No one was injured in the incident, deputies said

Abbie Maldonado, 30, was charged with felony child neglect. She was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail but has since posted bond.

The incident happened in the parking lot of Good Shepherd Academy in Deltona as parents were picking up their children for the day.

Maldonado was picking up her older son from school when the shooting happened.

She got out of her vehicle to walk around and left the boy unsecured in the back of the vehicles, the Sheriff's Office said in a news release. She said she left a rear door propped open so she could keep an eye on the child.

She told investigators that several people heard a loud bang, but they thought it was construction in the area. Maldonado told deputies that she went to the vehicle and took the child into the school to go to the bathroom, still not realizing anything was wrong.

When Maldonado returned to the vehicle, she heard the sound of a glass window crackling and realized the gun had been fired. Law enforcement was notified, and Volusia County deputies responded to the school at about 3:45 p.m.

No one was injured in the incident, deputies said.

"It put this child in harms way, it put everyone else in the immediate vicinity in harm's way," said Gary Davidson, public information officer with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office.

Maldonado told investigators she normally keeps her gun secured in a backpack in the trunk of the car, but on Monday, she left it in the storage pocket of the driver's side door.

Maldonado bonded out of jail, and her attorney said her children are back in her custody. The Department of Children and Families has launched an investigation, but Maldonado's attorney said he doesn't expect DCF to take the children away from her. 

"They could be at a funeral home planning a child's funeral,” Davidson said. "It's just frightening to think what could've happened."

Good Shepherd Academy sent out a statement to parents, urging them to exercise caution and to not leave children unattended. The school's principal said the school would report any suspected violation of Florida gun statutes on property to law enforcement.

"We are thankful to God that no one was injured," Principal Jared Rathje said in a statement.

Rathje declined to answer any additional questions when asked if the school has a weapons policy.