A 16-year-old Fayette boy faces

criminal charges after he accidentally shot and killed one of his close

friends with a revolver at a home in the Yates Crossing subdivision Wednesday,

Dec. 31, police said.

The victim, a 16-year-old boy

who formerly attended Sandy Creek High School, was shot in the back of

the head when the gun went off, Jordan said. The shooter was unaware the

weapon - a family heirloom, according to authorities - was loaded,

Jordan said.

The shooter is charged with

involuntary manslaughter, obstruction of a police officer and reckless

conduct, said Lt. Col. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff's

Department.

A 16-year-old from Henry County

also is charged with tampering with evidence for trying to dispose of

the gun, which was later found in a wooded area adjacent to the home,

located off Eastin Road in north-central Fayette County, Jordan said.

The shooter and the victim

were "longtime friends," Jordan added. The teens were not unsupervised

since a grandmother was home at the time, Jordan said.

The names of the victim and

the suspects are being withheld because the charges are brought in Fayette

County Juvenile Court, Jordan added.

"The person charged (with

involuntary manslaughter) was committing a reckless act with the weapon,"

Jordan said. "But there was no intent to kill the victim."

Emergency-911 operators were

originally told the victim had struck his head on a ceiling fan, officials

confirmed. Medics discovered the victim had a gunshot wound as they began

treatment.

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