ALLIANCE, Ohio — A 14-year-old boy is accused of staging a suicide with his mother’s help after accidentally shooting and killing a 15-year-old girl.
The shooting happened last Friday afternoon at a home on W. Summit Street in Alliance.
Today, the boy and his mother appeared in separate courtrooms.
The mother, 48-year-old Erin Barker, appeared in Alliance Municipal Court by video from the Stark County jail.
Barker is charged with tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony, court records show.
She spoke briefly to the judge before he set a $25,000 bond.
"I’ve never been in trouble. This is a very tragic thing. I just ask, please the mercy of the court. I'd love to be able to get out and try and take care of this and do what’s right for everybody involved,” said Barker.
Barker’s son is accused of taking her Glock 19 over to a friend’s house on W. Summit Street.
Police say that the boy was playing in the kitchen with the gun, which he thought was unloaded, when he accidentally shot 15-year-old Kennedy Wise in the face.
Wise died at the scene.
WATCH previous coverage:
RELATED: 15-year-old girl fatally shot in head in Alliance; 14-year-old boy charged
Police say the boy told his mom a different story.
“The gun was removed from the scene by your son, and your son told you that it was a suicide, so you returned the gun to the scene. You failed to tell officers on the scene that you had done so,” said Alliance Municipal Court Judge Andrew Zumbar.
Police say the boy panicked after the shooting and took the gun home.
“Got his mom to take him back to the scene and basically set it up to appear as a suicide,” said Alliance Police Sgt. Michael Jones.
Sgt. Jones says the mother and her son put the gun at the girl’s feet.
But after detectives interviewed witnesses, police say the boy confessed to accidentally shooting the girl.
Police say they believe this wasn’t the first time the boy got hold of his mom’s gun.
"Especially for us who have children, I know the officers who responded there. It’s always tough when it involves kids, especially something that is very preventable,” said Sgt. Jones.
The boy appeared in juvenile court in Canton on Monday. He has no criminal history with the court.
During his hearing, it was determined that the boy is a threat to himself and the public and lacks adequate parental supervision.
He was not allowed to return home.
The boy is expected back in court on June 30. He’s facing 12 counts, including involuntary manslaughter, reckless homicide and evidence tampering.
His mother has a preliminary hearing on Friday morning in Alliance.
