Girl, 14 shot dead by mistake

A 14-year-old girl was shot dead in Colorado by her stepfather who mistook her for a burglar, police say.

The teenager was found suffering from a gunshot wound by officers who were dispatched in response to a report of a break-in at the home on the north side of Colorado Springs on Tuesday.

Larry Herbert, police spokesman, said the girl was rushed to a local hospital, but her injuries were too serious and she was pronounced dead.

‘‘It has been determined that the victim’s stepfather is the individual who shot the firearm, striking the victim who was a resident of the involved home,’’ police wrote in a prepared statement.

Herbert said no arrests had been made and the case was being referred to the district attorney’s office to determine whether criminal charges were warranted.

Under Colorado’s ‘‘Make My Day’’ law, residents of the state are permitted to use deadly force if the intruder is believed to be committing a crime.

Neither the victim’s identity nor that of her stepfather were released.

The incident comes two days after another Colorado teenager, who was shot earlier this month by a gunman at her high school, died from her injuries. Claire Davis, 17, died on Sunday at a hospital with her family by her side eight days after being shot in the head.

Davis was killed after 18-yearold Karl Pierson went on an 80-second shooting rampage at Arapahoe High School in suburban Denver on December 13.