Background: News footage of the scene in Lansing, Mich., where a 4-year-old girl died of a gunshot wound (WILX). Inset: Maliki Pendergrass (Lansing Police Department).

Authorities have charged 22-year-old Maliki Pendergrass in connection with the fatal shooting of the young girl on January 21 in Lansing. In a statement from the Ingham County Prosecutor’s Office, obtained by Law&Crime, it was reported that police were called to the residence at 11:40 a.m. Upon arrival, they discovered the child had sustained a gunshot wound to the head. Despite the immediate efforts of emergency personnel, she was declared deceased at the location.

Officials pointed out that the firearm was “improperly stored” within the household. Details about the nature of the relationship between Pendergrass and the child have not been disclosed.

Due to a previous felony conviction, Pendergrass was prohibited from possessing a firearm. He now faces six charges related to firearms, including two counts concerning the improper storage of a weapon. Detained by the Lansing Police Department, he remains in custody on a $1 million bond. Pendergrass is set to appear in court again on February 6.

Pendergrass, who had a prior felony conviction, was not allowed to own a firearm. Prosecutors charged him with six felony firearms charges including two safe storage violations. He was booked into jail by the Lansing Police Department, where he is being held on $1 million bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Feb. 6.

In his press release, Ingham County Prosecuting Attorney John Dewane called the death of the girl “completely preventable,” adding that it “would not have occurred had the firearm been safely stored as required by Michigan law, using a gun lock or gun safe. One life lost is one too many, and we must do everything in our power to protect our children from preventable tragedies like this.”

Local NBC affiliate WILX spoke to neighbors who lived at the same apartment complex where the fatal shooting took place. One woman who did not want to appear on camera told the station through tears, “[T]hey need to put the guns down. They just need to put them down, they need to go find something better to do.”