Mom guilty after 5-year-old accidentally shoots, kills little brother

EAST ORANGE — A mother whose 5-year-old son accidentally shot his 4-year-old brother to death has pleaded guilty to child endangerment charges, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.

Itiyanah Spruill had initially pleaded not guilty to the charges from the June incident, after Christopher Lassiter was shot dead using a gun belonging to his mother.

Spruill, 22 — who'd already had a history of arrests for other matters — was arrested in connection with the shooting on charges of endangering the welfare of a child and a weapons violation. Spruill could be sentenced to three years in jail.

Spruill was previously arrested in Newark in 2014 on illegal gun charges but was never indicted or convicted, according to court records obtained by New Jersey 101.5.

Spruill also was arrested last month in East Orange on prostitution charges.

Contact reporter Dan Alexander at Dan.Alexander@townsquaremedia.com