LaFrance Johnson

After a 12-year-old boy was shot and killed by his brother Tuesday night, the boy’s aunt told officers she was to blame for his death. Aja Johnson, 36, said she left her loaded AR shotgun on the bed in the room where three children were left alone to play, according to a probable cause statement filed with the court. This wasn’t the first time LaFrance Johnson and his siblings went to the home in the 5600 block of Summit Place and played with the gun, police wrote. Police said on Tuesday around 7:30 p.m., LaFrance Johnson’s 10-year-old brother picked the loaded gun up, thinking it was unloaded like it had been previously, pointed it at the 12-year-old and pulled the trigger. Prosecutors on Thursday charged Aja Johnson with one misdemeanor count of endangering the welfare of a child. She is being held at the City Justice Center without bail, according to online court records.