Retired cop shoots her teen grandson after he punches hole in a wall, PA police say

A retired police officer is accused of shooting her teenage grandson, who tried to stop the bullet with a gaming console, according to Pennsylvania authorities and news reports.

Police in Pittsburgh said Feb. 11 the 16-year-old victim was dropped off at a hospital with a gunshot wound to the leg. A family member who dropped him off, authorities said, left before officers arrived.

That family member was determined to be 63-year-old Virginia Beck, a retired Pittsburgh police officer, KDKA reported. Beck and her grandson were involved in an argument in her Stanton Heights neighborhood home that led to the shooting.

Before the shooting, the grandson had recently ran away from home and was brought back to his grandmother’s home by police, according to WPXI. He said they began to argue when his grandmother became angry after he punched a hole in a bedroom wall.

As their argument intensified, the grandson picked up a PlayStation console with the intent of smashing it, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Instead, Beck pulled a gun from her waist and shot her grandson in the upper thigh, police told WTAE.

The grandson attempted to use the PlayStation to block the gunshot, the Post-Gazette reported.

Police said the teen was listed in stable condition in the hospital, and WTAE reported he was later released.

Beck was charged with criminal attempted homicide, aggravated assault, endangering the welfare of children and recklessly endangering another person, police said. She was taken to the Allegheny County Jail.

WPXI reported Beck was denied bail, as a judge said she posed a threat to her grandson and the community.

This story was originally published February 13, 2025 at 11:31 AM with the headline "Retired cop shoots her teen grandson after he punches hole in a wall, PA police say."