Alexzander Edward Bell Pope, a 6-year-old White male, died inside his family's home in Lohrville, Iowa, on the morning of June 16, 2023. Shortly before 7 a.m., the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office received a 911 call directing emergency responders to the residence at 500 Maple Street. Deputies arrived to find Alexzander already deceased from a gunshot wound.
Personnel from Lohrville EMS and Calhoun County EMS also responded, while the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation joined the sheriff's office in examining how the shooting had occurred.
Investigators ultimately determined that Alexzander had found and handled a loaded handgun that had been left accessible inside the home. According to the allegations later filed in court, the weapon discharged while it was in his hands, fatally striking him. Authorities classified the shooting as accidental rather than an intentional act of violence, but the investigation focused on why a young child had been able to reach a loaded firearm. Court documents alleged that multiple children younger than 14 lived in the residence and that firearms had been kept in areas accessible to them.
Alexzander was born on August 24, 2016, to Justin and Amanda Pope. Known to his family as Zander, he had recently completed kindergarten at South Central Calhoun and was remembered as an enthusiastic student who enjoyed learning. He was the oldest of three brothers and was described as a caring and playful big brother. He loved Hot Wheels cars, building with Legos, riding his bicycle and attending church activities. His interest in automobiles came from his father, and family members recalled that he enjoyed helping his father work on cars. His sudden death left his parents, brothers, grandparents, extended relatives, classmates and the Lohrville community mourning a child whose life had ended just as he was beginning to discover the world around him.
The investigation continued for more than four months before Alexzander's father, Justin Richard Pope, was charged in October 2023. Authorities accused him of leaving firearms easily accessible in the residence. The criminal complaints stated that at least two of the weapons were loaded handguns and that they had not been secured with trigger locks or stored inside locked boxes or containers. Justin Pope was charged with child endangerment resulting in death, a Class B felony carrying the possibility of a lengthy prison sentence, and making firearms available to a minor, an aggravated misdemeanor.
Justin Pope surrendered to the Calhoun County Sheriff's Office on the outstanding warrants and was later released under the supervision of the Iowa Department of Correctional Services. He waived a preliminary hearing and entered not-guilty pleas to both charges. At that point, the case appeared headed toward further court proceedings, with prosecutors alleging that his failure to secure the weapons had directly enabled the circumstances that led to his son's death.
The prosecution did not proceed to trial. In December 2023, the Calhoun County Attorney's Office moved to dismiss the charges after determining that the available evidence was insufficient to prove the accusations beyond a reasonable doubt. A judge approved the request, and both charges against Justin Pope were dismissed without prejudice. That designation left prosecutors legally able to refile the charges if additional evidence were discovered, but no conviction resulted from the case and no other person was identified as a suspect.
Alexzander's death was therefore officially treated as a tragic accidental shooting rather than a homicide committed by an outside attacker. Although his father was arrested and briefly faced serious criminal allegations concerning the storage of the firearms, those allegations were never tested at trial and did not result in a finding of guilt. The case ended without anyone being convicted, leaving Alexzander's family and community to live with the devastating consequences of a loaded gun being within a child's reach.
