IOWA CITY, Iowa — An Iowa City woman has been arrested after her three-year-old toddler was found wandering a neighborhood with a loaded handgun.
According to a criminal complaint, 31-year-old Samantha Hall has been charged with making firearms available to a minor and child endangerment.
The charges stem from a Friday, June 14 incident in which a passerby observed the child walking down a sidewalk carrying a handgun in the 1600 block of Vesti Lane in Iowa City. The passerby took the handgun, which had a full magazine, from the toddler.
Police say Hall took the child and returned to her house, where officers eventually located the two. Hall told police that she was cleaning the house and didn't realize the child had left the residence. According to police, Hall admitted to keeping a handgun on her nightstand.
According to a Facebook post, free gun locks are available to local residents at the Johnson County Sheriff's Office, the Johnson County Treasurer's Office and Johnson County Veterans Affairs.
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