Girl, 2, dies after being shot in Gary home on Saturday

• Reprints

Updated: January 16, 2012 7:37PM

GARY — Two-year-old Joriah Henderson died Monday morning, two days after she was shot in the head by a slightly older half-sister.

The toddler, who was flown Saturday to University of Chicago’s Comer Children’s Hospital, was pronounced dead about 11 a.m., a Chicago medical examiner spokesman said.

The toddler is the second homicide of the year in Gary.

Police spokeswoman Cpl. Gabrielle King said the investigation into the shooting is ongoing.

It appears that Joriah was at her father’s Tolleston home in the 2500 block of West 9th Avenue when her 3-year-old half-sister fired a loaded .22-caliber pistol.

The two children were in a bedroom with another person, who may have been asleep.

Lake County crime laboratory detectives took possession of the weapon and will test it to determine the amount of strength required to pull the trigger.

King said five people were in the house when the shooting occurred: Joriah, the 3-year-old, a 16-year-old and two adults, including the victim’s father, Robert Henderson, 40.

Investigators plan to question family members and occupants of the house after the girl’s funeral.

Anyone with information about the shooting can call Detective Cpl. Michael Barnes at 881-7434.