Kashaan Moses cared for three people at the residential group home. His primary role was to prepare food, dispense medication and keep the residents safe.
A Philadelphia man who worked as a caregiver in a group home accidentally shot one of the residents in the face last month while he was unloading his gun has now been charged with “reckless endangerment,” police said.
On Wednesday, Kashaan Moses, 25, surrendered to police and was charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and reckless endangerment in the April 10 shooting in Lansdale, Pennsylvania, according to Upper Gwynedd Township Police Department in a statement.
Moses, who since 2014 had worked as a caregiver with the Jewish Education Vocation (JEVS), a human service agency that provides care for people with special needs and disabilities, had been caring for victim Robert Lavin, 71, one of the three people who lived in the home that is owned and operated by JEVS.
Lavin, who suffers from development disabilities, lost his left eye in the shooting. As a result of his injuries, he suffered a stroke, and an aneurysm, and will likely require medical care for the rest of his life, the affidavit said, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The organization had a “no weapons” policy which Moses was aware of according to JEVS officials, NBC reported.
On the morning of the incident, Lavin and Moses, who were seated six to eight feet away from each other, were watching television together, when he was shot. Police said Moses pulled the slide back to make sure the gun wasn’t loaded, and the gun went off. Moses immediately called 911. When police arrived Lavin was found in the chair unresponsive. Emergency personnel attempted to treat him and transported him to a nearby hospital, the release said.
Police said he had been shot in the left side of his face just below his left eye.
Based on the 911 call, statements Moses made at the scene, and a recorded statement he made at the police department, Moses reportedly shot the victim accidentally, the release said.
“He feels remorse. He knows it is a terrible tragedy what happened." Upper Gwynedd Police Chief David Duffy told NBC10 News Philadelphia.
Moses told police that he recently purchased a firearm, a Glock 17,9 mm handgun, after having lost some of his friends to gun violence in Philadelphia. The night of the shooting, he said that he didn’t want to keep the gun inside his car overnight, NBC reported.
According to police, Moses does not have a criminal record. He had obtained a permit to carry a firearm in Philadelphia in late February and legally purchased the gun on April 3, NBC reported.
Chief Duffy said that Moses made a “very poor decision that is going to affect him the rest of his life,” NBC reported.
Duffy added: “In my experience, the more a person claims that he or she is capable of safely retaining, storing, and handling a firearm, the less likely that is to be true. My heart goes out to the victim and his family."
Moses’ attorney, Daniel Schatz told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the “incident is incredibly unfortunate, but by all accounts accidental.
"All I can say is that we’re looking forward to our day in court," Schatz said.
Moses was released on $25,000 bail unsecured, NBC reported.
His preliminary hearing is scheduled for Thursday, June 3, 2021 at 12:45 pm., according to the police report.
When Inside Edition Digital reached out to Moses' attorney he was unavailable.
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