Woman sues Scheels over son's death by suicide inside store

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — A Minnesota woman is suing Scheels, alleging the sports retailer acted irresponsibly in her son's death.

According to the lawsuit, her then 19-year-old son went to an Eden Prairie Scheels to look at handguns. When an employee gave him one, he shot himself .

The lawsuit claims Scheels acted irresponsibly by not making it more difficult to get ahold of a gun and use it in the stores.

The suit aims to hold the company liable because he wasn't 21, the legal age for buying guns in Minnesota, and the gun did not have a disabling device on it, the suit alleges.

When WCCO reported on the shooting in 2022, police said they believed the 19-year-old brought his own ammunition to the store.

WCCO has reached out to Scheels for a comment.

If you or someone you know is in emotional distress, get help from the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. Trained crisis counselors are available 24 hours a day to talk about anything.

In addition, help is available from the National Alliance on Mental Illness , or NAMI. Call the NAMI Helpline at 800-950-6264 or text "HelpLine" to 62640. There are more than 600 local NAMI organizations and affiliates across the country, many of which offer free support and education programs.

Note: The video above originally aired Aug. 23, 2022.