# A cover-up in Alliance, and a grand jury's answer

> A 14-year-old brought his mother's gun to a friend's house. What happened after the shot is why she's now facing charges.
- Title: A cover-up in Alliance, and a grand jury's answer | Shortify
- Summary: A 14-year-old brought his mother's gun to a friend's house. What happened after the shot is why she's now facing charges. Moving a gun and staying quiet…
- Keywords: gun violence, ohio, teen shooting, criminal charges, parental liability, news, local, cover-up, Alliance, grand, jury's, answer
- Source: Valleynewslive — https://valleynewslive.com/2026/09/15/jury-indicts-mother-after-14-year-old-son-accused-deadly-shooting-with-her-gun
- Published: 2026-09-15T21:47:31.292+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: gun violence, ohio, teen shooting, criminal charges, parental liability, news, local
## A mother indicted
A Stark County grand jury indicted Erin Barker, 47, on a charge of tampering with evidence. She is set to be arraigned on Oct. 2.
## A June afternoon in Alliance
Police say Barker's 14-year-old son used her gun to fatally shoot 15-year-old Kennedy Wise around 4:15 p.m. on June 19, at a home on West Summit Street.
## The gun came from home
The boy knew Wise. He brought his mother's gun with him to the house, according to police.

> the boy, an acquaintance of the victim, brought the gun to the home
## He took it and lied
After the shooting, the boy removed the gun from the scene and told his mother the death was a suicide.
## She put it back
Police say Barker returned the gun to the scene and never told officers she had done it. That silence is the tampering charge.
## The truth, later
The boy eventually admitted he accidentally shot Wise in the head and that it was not a suicide. He faces involuntary manslaughter and is held in juvenile detention.
## Key takeaway

Moving a gun and staying quiet turned a parent into a defendant: after a shooting, what you do next is its own crime.