In my state, “a person may not store or leave a loaded firearm in a location where the person knew or should have known that an unsupervised child would gain access to the firearm.”
I taught my kids to shoot and how to answer the inevitable questions if they had to shoot. “I’m not supposed to touch the guns without my parents there, but I’ve watched my dad unlock the safe so I could guess the combination. I was afraid that the intruder would hurt me or hurt a family member. I don’t want to say anything else until I talk with my dad and with a lawyer.” Then don’t say anything at all until a parent and a lawyer are both present.
My kids were taught not to shoot unless they could say that truthfully, and not to get into a situation where they could not reach a loaded firearm in time. Weapons first, cell phone second, retreat third and only if the entire family can get out safely in an emergency.
This 11 year old is not a child. He could have taken his girlfriend for an abortion and would not even have had to tell the parents. Plus all the good things he gets taught in school that parents don’t need to know about. My grandson is 7 and it reminded me that he needs to begin learning about guns.