Featured Image Credit: Instagram/Francie Chapman
Topics: Mental Health, News, Celebrity, US News
Niamh Shackleton
Topics: Mental Health, News, Celebrity, US News
Warning: This article contains discussion of suicide which some readers may find distressing.
Dog the Bounty Hunter's step-son has been placed on psychiatric hold following the accidental shooting of his son over the weekend.
On Saturday (July 19), Anthony Zecca, the 13-year-old step-grandson of TV star Dog the Bounty Hunter, was fatally shot by his father, Gregory Zecca, in what the family has described as a 'tragic accident.' Zecca is the son of Francie Chapman, who has been married to Duane 'Dog' Chapman for nearly four years.
Speaking on the heartbreaking incident, a rep for Chapman said yesterday: "We are grieving as a family over this incomprehensible tragic accident and would ask for continued prayers as we grieve the loss of our beloved grandson, Anthony."
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It's now been reported that Zecca has been placed on a 5150 psychiatric hold.
OC Health Info says of this kind of hold: "5150 is the number of the section of the Welfare and Institutions Code, which allows an adult who is experiencing a mental health crisis to be involuntarily detained for a 72-hour psychiatric hospitalization when evaluated to be a danger to others, or to himself or herself, or gravely disabled."
It adds: "A person on a 5150 can be held in the hospital involuntarily for up to 72 hours. This does not mean that they will necessarily be held the entire 72 hours; it means that psychiatric hospitals have the legal right to do so if determined to be necessary."
Confirming that Zecca is currently being held, a family rep told TMZ: "Greg has been put on a 5150 psychiatric hold because he is so devastated by the loss of his only son, Anthony and we're told there were concerns Gregory might try and take his own life."
The rep added that the hold is a result of Zecca's devastation after the loss of his 13-year-old son and 'not because he feels guilty of a crime in relation to the shooting'.
LADbible Group have approached Collier County Sheriff’s Office and Chapman’s rep for comment.
Police are currently investigating Saturday's fatal incident, which unfolded at an apartment in Naples, Florida.
Confirming that there had been an accident, The Collier County Sheriff’s Office told DailyMail.com: "The call came into our dispatch at 8:08 p.m. This was an isolated incident.
"Our detectives are conducting a thorough investigation looking into all the elements of this tragic incident.
"The investigation includes statements from witnesses who were at the scene, forensic testing, subpoenas, and search warrants."
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available through Mental Health America. Call or text 988 to reach a 24-hour crisis center or you can webchat at 988lifeline.org. You can also reach the Crisis Text Line by texting MHA to 741741.
Or, if you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.