A small child found a loaded gun between the living room couch cushions Jan. 27 at a West Side apartment and fired the weapon, narrowly missing his face.

Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein’s office said the bullet nearly struck the child, burning the child and causing short-term hearing loss. Another child was in the room. The incident was captured by a security camera inside the apartment.

In what was the first test of the city’s new safe storage law for firearms, Klein announced Tuesday that the boy's father, 28-year-old Matthew Rivas, pleaded guilty April 4 to two counts of negligent storage of a firearm and one count of child endangerment.

Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Jarrod B. Skinner sentenced Rivas to 10 days in jail and two years of probation. If Rivas does not successfully complete his probation, he will face 170 days in jail. Skinner also ordered Rivas to pay a $150 fine and ordered the firearm from the incident to be destroyed.

Klein’s office said the sentence was jointly recommended by Rivas’ attorney and prosecutors after lengthy discussion with Lashandra Allen, the mother of the two children involved.

Klein said the case is an example of why more — not fewer — gun control laws are needed.

“As a father, the images of a small child reaching into a couch cushion, finding a loaded firearm and discharging the weapon nearly pointed at his face are almost too chilling to watch,” said Klein.

Klein said there’s nothing wrong with responsible gun ownership but leaving an unsecured gun around the house for kids to find is irresponsible.

This case comes as the state and the Buckeye Institute are suing the city for recently passed gun safety ordinances, including requirements for safe storage of firearms in homes so minors cannot access weapons. The city has also limited high capacity magazines.

“My heart breaks for these children whose innocence and sense of safety have been lost in what’s a wholly preventable situation,” said Joseph Gibson, the city’s chief prosecutor who tried this case. “This case is a clear cut example of why safe storage is so important to public safety and a reminder that the city is serious about holding those who endanger children accountable.”

Allen said in Klein’s office’s media release that it’s a parent’s worst nightmare that someone will hurt or kill your child.

“But to know that it can happen in the care of someone who is supposed to protect them is heartbreaking,” said Allen.

Allen stressed the importance of gun safety and using a gun lock or a safe to secure firearms.

"We were lucky and I am very thankful that the situation did not result in a funeral. This will forever be a critical memory for me and my family,” Allen said.

jlaird@dispatch.com

@LairdWrites

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus dad convicted under new city law after young child fires gun