Answer:
Making a firearm accessible to a child is a Class C Misdemeanor punishable by up to $500 fine. This offense could occur, for example, if your son brings some friends home and starts showing off the loaded gun you keep under the couch.
If the gun goes off and someone gets hurt or dies, the punishment is more serious. It is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $4,000 fine, if the child discharges a firearm and causes death or serious bodily injury to himself or another person.
Interestingly, the law specifically states if the negligent gun owner is a member of the family of the child who discharged the firearm, and the child was seriously injured or killed, an arrest cannot be made until seven days after the offense was committed. This aspect of the law was put into place to allow the gun owner, which is often a parent or relative, a grieving period before being taken into custody.
Explanation:
Under Texas Penal Code 46.13, a person commits the offense of making a firearm accessible to a child if the child gains access to a readily dischargeable firearm, and the person with criminal negligence:
Failed to secure the firearm; or
Left the firearm in a place to which the person knew or should have known the child would gain access