8-year-old boy dies after accidental shooting in Goodlettsville

Authorities are investigating after an 8-year-old boy died Wednesday in an accidental shooting in Goodlettsville, local police confirmed.

The incident took place about 9:15 a.m. in the 100 block of Elizabeth Court, Sumner County Emergency Management Director Ken Weidner said.

The City of Goodlettsville Police and Fire Departments responded to the scene, in the Long Hollow Place Subdivision, and the child was taken to an area medical center, where he later died, according to a news release from the Goodlettsville Police Department.

It was not immediately clear how the shooting took place.

Scene where an 8-year-old boy was shot in Goodlettsville on July 7, 2021.

The boy's family has requested prayers and privacy via social media.

His principal also posted a message on social media, urging the community to pray for the family.

The child was a student at Madison Creek Elementary School.

"He was full of energy and a friend to so many at MCE," Principal Jon Duncan wrote Wednesday. "What a blessing it was to see him every morning at breakfast, where I would pretend to steal his food just to see his smile light up the cafeteria."

Duncan added that the boy had left his family and the school far too early.

"Rest in peace, young man. You are already missed," he wrote.

Nicole Young is a community news editor based in Nashville at The Tennessean. Reach her at nyoung@tennessean.com or 615-306-3570. Natalie Neysa Alund is based in Nashville at The Tennessean and covers breaking news across the South for the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at nalund@tennessean.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.