Boy, 11, shoots girl, 8, over puppy

The mother of an eight-year-old shot dead by an 11-year-old boy because she would not let him see her puppy has spoken of her devastation.

Latasha Dyer said her daughter McKayla was playing outside when the neighbour asked to see the puppy. She said that when McKayla refused, he shot her.

Jefferson County Sheriff Bud McCoig said the boy used his father’s 12-gauge shotgun to shoot McKayla from inside his home.

Police called to the scene on Saturday in White Pine, Tennessee, found McKayla on the ground with a chest wound. She was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

“She was a precious little girl, she was a mommy’s girl, no matter how bad of a mood you were in she could always make you smile,” Dyer told ABC affilliate wate.com.

Misty Edwards, who used to babysit McKayla, said: “She won over everybody’s heart... She was a happy little girl. She was always smiling. She was quiet, but she would always have a big smile on her face.”

School principal Bill Walker said: “It just touches so many people. The emotions of the staff are so great when something like this happens. We are all trying to love on them and pray for and protect all of our students.”