Gun Fail

Sat Jun 22, 2013
GunFAIL XXIII

by David Waldman

You've seen this sort of thing before, right? An open carry demonstrator "just exercising his rights," carrying his shotgun while walking his dog, and videotaping his encounter with police. It's usually billed as anything from heavy-handed harassment of a law-abiding citizen, to a tyrannical suppression of civil liberties, but most often the encounters evidence kid glove treatment from officers, as compared with, say, how Occupy protesters are treated. Can you imagine attempting to argue city ordinances and adjudicate your constitutional rights on the street with Dep. Inspector Bologna, for instance?

Well, it's all good, of course, because these open carry protesters are educated on the ins and outs of the law, are cool customers, and pretty much the definition of the Responsible Gun Owner.TM Until they're not. And this week, we ran headlong into that awkward moment when the Responsible Gun OwnerTM suddenly becomes a murderer. And then a suicide statistic.

That's a special kind of GunFAIL, though it's one I don't track any more. So we'll leave that story there.

Otherwise, it's your usual assortment of mishaps, stupidity, bad luck, poor judgment, lack of attention to safety rules, etc. It was a week of threes, though. Three fellow patriots exercised their right to override their neighbors' decisions about guns on their property, liberating them from the projectile-free lifestyle by sheer force of American exceptionalism. Three more patriots gave their cold, dead hands a rest, leaving their guns behind in areas where well-regulated militias were sure to put them to the most efficient use, specifically, underneath a hotel room mattress, and in the restrooms of a movie theater and a salad bar-less Applebees. Still three more of our friends shot themselves cleaning and/or fixing loaded weapons, while one more did so while examining a gun he was considering buying. No word on the "you break it, you bought it" policy there. Three law enforcement officers experienced GunFAILs this week, though only one officer actually shot herself. And we count three wounds resulting from target shooting accidents this week, as well.

Oh, yes. And this week also marks the third time this year that a family in Tennessee has accidentally shot their own baby.

In the category of singular events this week, just one identified killing of a family member mistaken for an intruder, and just one child shot in the neck by celebratory gunfire following the conclusion of the NBA Finals.

Now, without further ado, this week's compilation, below the fold.

1.     STREAMWOOD, IL, 6/02/13: After bullets entered two homes in the 400 block of Waverly Avenue and numerous gunshots seemed to be coming from a yard next door in the 400 block of Sherwood Avenue, Streamwood police surrounded the latter house. As numerous people who had been in the backyard fled into the home and turned off its lights, officers with a bullhorn demanded that the people inside surrender. The siege ended about an hour later after officers reached people inside the house via telephone and arranged for them to come out one at a time. But it all turned out to be just a case of misguided target practice during a family party, investigators concluded. According to reports, Peter M. Kriescher Sr., 49, who rents a room in the Sherwood Avenue home, was having a post-divorce barbecue with his children and some of their friends when they decided to start shooting a .22-caliber pistol at some books. But police said one bullet went through the wall of a neighbor’s bedroom, crossed the room and lodged inside clothes in the bedroom closet; another bullet lodged in another neighbor’s siding; and 30 bullets went through the side of a neighbor’s shed.
2.     NEW ORLEANS, LA, 6/11/13: Around 7:45 p.m. Tuesday, a 72-year-old man was in his Hollygrove home in the 2800 block of Eagle Street showing a friend his semi-automatic handgun. Felton Dyer then accidently squeezed the trigger and shot the friend in the leg, officials said. Detectives have confirmed with the victim that the incident was an accident, officials said.
3.     ORANGE, OH, 6/11/13: Police responded the afternoon of June 11 to a report of a loaded handgun being found in a room at the Extended Stay America hotel. A Warrensville Heights woman said she was checking the room over when she lifted the mattress and found what proved to be a 9mm Sig Sauer P226 underneath.
4.     CHARLESTON, SC, 6/14/13: A teen walked into a West Ashley home uninvited last week and proceeded to accidentally shoot himself in the leg, authorities say. According to a Charleston Police Department report, officers responded to an apartment in the 1600 block of William Kennerty Drive around 1:15 p.m. Friday after receiving reports of a shooting. A woman in the home said she and her young niece were in the kitchen when 17-year-old Thomas Ancrum walked into the home uninvited. The woman said she told Ancrum, a relative’s ex-boyfriend, that he was unwelcome in the house and should not be there. The woman said Ancrum first stared back at her, before she told him to leave a second time, at which time he agreed. The woman said Ancrum walked around a wall in the apartment and she heard a loud, booming noise. She walked around to see what happened and found Ancrum limping towards the front door, saying, “I shot myself!”  Investigators said Ancrum had a gun in the waistband of his pants, which he accidentally discharged.
5.     PONTIAC, MI, 6/14/13:  A Detroit man could be headed from a hospital bed to a jail cell after deputies said he misled them by claiming he had been shot in the leg when he accidentally shot himself, according to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies were dispatched to the 600 block of Baldwin at 4:07 p.m. Friday for a 24-year-old Detroit man with a gunshot wound in his left thigh. The man told deputies he had been shot while walking on LeGrande. He said he didn’t see his assailant. After canvassing the area, deputies got a different version of what happened. Witnesses said the man and another individual got into an argument with a third person. When the altercation escalated, the “victim” pulled out a handgun and accidentally shot himself. When a detective interviewed him, the man admitted to the shooting. Law enforcement recovered the gun used in the mishap.
6.     CHARLESTON, WV, 6/14/13: Chief of Detectives for the Charleston Police Department, Sergeant S.A. Cooper, tells WSAZ Timothy Williams, 26 of Charleston, was showing his friend, John Joseph, 27 of Charleston, his gun. Cooper say Williams took the clip out and thought the gun was not loaded, when he pulled the trigger and shot Joseph in the mid-section of his body with a round that was still in the chamber. The incident happened at about 11:30pm Friday at Williams' town house in the 300 block of Washington Street East.  Williams immediately called 9-1-1 for help, according to Cooper. Joseph was taken to CAMC General Hospital where he later died. Right now, police are calling the shooting an accident and are not filing charges against Williams. They say, however, they're continuing to investigate the incident, and will leave it up to the Kanawha County Prosecutor's office as to whether or not charges are filed.
7.     STRASBURG, VA, 6/14/13:  Charges are pending against a Strasburg man after he accidentally fired his 9 millimeter pistol in his home. Strasburg police say Johnathan Franz didn't know his gun was loaded while he was cleaning it Friday. The bullet went through his hand and into his wife's leg. Police tell us that his injuries to his hand are more serious.
8.     BOISE, ID, 6/14/13: The Transportation Security Administration discovered the handgun inside a passenger’s bag as she was going through the security checkpoint Friday. Boise police confiscated the handgun belonging to Mia K. Gussie, 31, of Meridian, according to a press release. Officers determined that Gussie does have a valid concealed weapons permit, but she was charged with violating a state law forbidding concealed weapons in certain parts of airports. Gussie had the .380 caliber Ruger pistol in her carry-on bag, according to a TSA press release. The gun was loaded with six rounds.
9.     GREENEVILLE, TN, 6/15/13: A Kingsport Highway man who accidentally shot himself in the chest about 10:30 p.m. Saturday was listed this morning in critical condition in Johnson City Medical Center. Marion Watson, 58, of 620 Kingsport Highway, was sitting on his front porch steps working on his Leinad 45/410 Derringer pistol when the accident happened, sheriff's Lt. Terry S. Rader said in a report. "He was having trouble opening the two-shot gun. As he was trying to work on it, the pistol discharged, striking him in the chest," the report said.
10.     COLUMBUS, OH, 6/15/13: The Juneteenth Festival at Franklin Park has been shut down for the weekend, after a child was accidentally shot. Around 7:00, witnesses say they saw commotion near the park's amphitheater and heard gunshots. Detectives say a 11-year old boy was struck in the leg during the crossfire.
11.     ARENDAHL TOWNSHIP, MN, 6/15/13: The Fillmore County Sheriff's Office says a Utica man was accidentally shot and killed during a bachelor - bachelorette party Saturday night. The sheriff says Jeffrey Taylor and his two sons had been tending to his cattle at a property in Arendahl Township and that the bachelor - bachelorette party was being held at a home on the same property. Taylor and his sons were invited to stop by the party as they were leaving. Authorities say some of the people from the party were shooting explosive targets for fun. Just before 9 p.m., a person shot at a target as several people stood by and watched. Taylor was standing in a group of people behind the shooter and was apparently struck by shrapnel.
12.     BOSTON, MA, 6/15/13: Police responded to 107 Devon St. Saturday morning for an alleged accidental shooting. Upon arrival, the male victim told police his cousin who was "playing with a gun" shot him. The victim told police the suspect had already left the apartment and took the gun used in the incident with him. The victim was transported to Boston Medical Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. At about 2:45 p.m. on Sunday, 33-year-old Anthony Arthur, of Roslindale, turned himself in to police in connection with that shooting. He is charged with assault and battery by means of a dangerous weapon.
13.     TOLEDO, OH, 6/15/13: Just after 5:30 p.m. Saturday, Brian Eberflus was accidentally shot in his right knee by his father, David Eberflus, according to a police report. Police said the men first reported someone shot the younger Mr. Eberflus while the two were grilling, but later changed the story. David Eberflus, 49, of 332 Palmer Ave., was charged with discharge of a firearm.
14.     LAWRENCE CO., AL, 6/16/13: Happy Father's Day, Grandpa! You shot your grandson! Lawrence County Sheriff Gene Mitchell confirms a shooting Sunday morning. It happened on County Road 587 around 10am. Sheriff Mitchell says the shooting was accidental. He confirms a grandfather accidentally shot his grandson. He says the grandson appears to have been grazed by a bullet. It was possibly a ricochet.
15.     POPLAR BLUFF, MO, 6/16/13: Brandon Holloman, 21, of Springfield, Missouri was taken by EMS to Poplar Bluff Regional Medical Center for treatment for a single gunshot wound to his abdomen. Holloman told police Fernando Minnis shot him accidentally while Minnis was “playing” with a handgun. Holloman said he had examined the weapon, and pulled the trigger himself without firing the gun, before handing it to Minnis. Interviews with Fernando Minnis and several witnesses at the scene supported Holloman's account.
16.     AUTRYVILLE, NC, 6/16/13: Happy Father's Day, Dad! I came over to show you my new—BLAM! Augh! A Fayetteville man was injured Sunday when a gun he was handling accidentally discharged and a bullet struck him in the stomach, authorities said. Jeffery Thomas Altman, 42, of the 2600 block of Huntcroft Drive, was visiting at his father's home on the 100 block of Beagle Lane in Autryville when the accident happened about 3:30 p.m., according to a report from the Sampson County Sheriff's Office. Altman was attempting to put the handgun back into a holster when it discharged, Capt. Eric Pope said. He did not know what caused the gun to fire.
17.     FERNDALE, WA, 6/16/13: A 23-year-old woman has died after a stray bullet — fired from more than a half-mile away — struck her in the chest at a Father's Day barbecue. Her dad called 911 in the late afternoon Sunday, June 16, to report bullets whizzing overhead at a family cookout on Gadwa Road, just west of the Nooksack River, said Whatcom County Sheriff's Sgt. Kevin Moyes. Moments later the man called back saying his daughter had been hit in the chest. She was taken to St. Joseph hospital with critical injuries from a single bullet wound. Monday morning she succumbed to her injuries. Responding sheriff's deputies heard more gunfire echoing on the other side of the river. They traced the shots to a group of five people a little more than a half mile to the east. All of them were detained and interviewed. They had been shooting handguns and high-powered rifles near the riverbank, in the direction of the house on Gadwa, according to the sheriff's office.
18.     YBOR CITY, FL, 6/16/13: A 9-year-old boy found a loaded handgun inside an Ybor City movie theater bathroom on Father's Day. The gun was a Glock 26 9-mm. "My son opened the door and immediately said dad there's a gun in the bathroom," recounted Wesley Noland, the boy's father. Noland was at the Muvico theater in Centro Ybor with his two sons to see the new Superman movie. He said the weapon was sitting on top of the toilet paper dispenser. UPDATE: The "Responsible Gun Owner" who left it behind? A cop.
19.     SAN JOAQUIN CO., CA, 6/16/13: Police spoke with a man in the emergency room at Sutter Tracy Community Hospital, 1420 N. Tracy Blvd., who allegedly shot himself while cleaning a gun. The extent of his injury is unknown, and the log doesn’t indicate what kind of gun the man shot himself with. The alleged shooting happened at a residence outside of Tracy, and the case was transferred to the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office.
20.     ORLANDO, FL, 6/16/13: Another gun has been found in a passenger's bag at Orlando International Airport. A loaded handgun was discovered in the carry-on of a 66-year-old St. Augustine man on Sunday. This is the 19th gun found at OIA this year.
21.     MILWAUKEE, WI, 6/17/13: Milwaukee police are investigating an officer-involved shooting near 52nd and Capitol Dr. Police say an officer accidentally shot a robbery suspect as he was being taken into custody. Police responded to an armed robbery on the 4700 block of N. 48th St. around 12:00 p.m. Police say two men robbed a victim of their 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix at gunpoint. Milwaukee police officer spotted the stolen vehicle near 53rd and Melvina. Both men fled from the officer on foot, but police only caught one of the suspects. As this suspect was being taken into custody an officer accidentally discharged his weapon, hitting the robbery suspect in the thigh.
22.     SANDY CREEK TOWNSHIP, IN, 6/17/13: A 12-year-old Jennings County, Ind. boy was rushed to the hospital Monday night after police said his 16-year-old brother accidentally shot him. Deputies were dispatched to the family's home around 11:30 Monday night and found the 12-year-old boy unresponsive. Police said he had been shot in the head by a .22 caliber rifle. Police said the family had been shooting firearms earlier in the day. Other family members were asleep at the time of the accidental shooting. They believe that 16-year-old was handling the gun when it accidentally fired, striking his brother. UPDATE: He didn't make it.
23.     AVON, OH, 6/17/13: There's still no salad bar, but they've got guns in the bathroom. The women's bathroom, this time. An Applebees manager called Avon police to report a loaded handgun was found in the women’s restroom yesterday. Management at Applebees, 35916 Detroit Road, held onto it for an hour and a half to see if anyone would claim it, Sgt. Brian Tackett said. Police will try to determine who the owner is and why it was left at the restaurant. Tackett said that the gun is a 9mm .380-caliber handgun.
24.     CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA, 6/17/13: A TSA officer spotted a loaded gun in a bag going through the security screening Monday. Airport police confiscated a 22-caliber handgun, which contained five rounds. The passenger had a concealed carry permit so he was not charged. He was allowed to catch his flight to Atlanta, minus the gun and ammunition. That's an interesting twist, isn't it? I guess at some airports, if you've got a concealed carry permit, they'll give you one free shot at trying to sneak a gun on board. How nice!
25.     FORT WORTH, TX, 6/17/13: At approximately 1:18 p.m. today, a Tarrant County College police officer sustained a gunshot wound to her leg. She was participating in annual qualifications to meet state licensing standards on the TCC gun range, located at TCC's Northwest Campus. The officer accidently shot herself while attempting to re-holster her weapon. The officer is alert and currently being transported to a local area hospital.
26.     DALLAS, TX, 6/17/13:  On June 17 around 4:40 pm, police say two cars collided in the 5900 block of Arapaho Road, near Prestonwood Country Club. Courtney Ray Terrell, 29, stepped out of his Jaguar and approached the driver's side window of a black Nissan Altima. The driver of the Nissan rolled down his window, and the two men began to argue. That's when police believe the driver pulled out a gun and started shooting. At least one bullet struck Terrell in the stomach and several others hit a passing car, causing more than $1,000 in damage.
27.     HOUSTON, TX, 6/18/13: A man in northwest Harris County says he fatally shot his son Tuesday after mistaking him to be a burglar trying to break inside his house, Harris County detectives said.
28.     COOKEVILLE, TN, 6/18/13: Todd Gregory Carpenter was mad at his dog for “eating” part of his couch, so he fired bullets at the animal. It happened Tuesday afternoon inside the Shipley Road home of Carpenter, and the bullets he fired went through his wall and through a neighboring wall in an apartment, endangering two painters who were working there.
29.     CORNING, NY, 6/18/13:  Two teens have been arrested in connection with a reported shooting and robbery attempt Tuesday afternoon on Jennings Street in Corning, and police say additional arrests are possible. Brendan M. Mattei and Coty L. Ferris, both 18 and of Corning, were arrested Tuesday night and charged with second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a class C felony that calls for a mandatory minimum prison sentence of 3.5 years. Both men allegedly possessed the gun used during the incident.  Mattei apparently shot himself in the hand during the incident on Jennings Street, police said. After his arrest, he was taken to Corning Hospital for treatment.
30.     PASCO, WA, 6/19/13: A teenage boy is in critical condition Thursday at Kennewick General Hospital from a gunshot wound. The shooting is being investigated as a possible accidental shooting, said Capt. Jim Raymond. A group of juveniles were reportedly playing with the handgun when it went off. Police do not believe the boy shot himself intentionally, Raymond said. Pasco police were dispatched to an apartment in the 200 block of South Owen Avenue just before 5 p.m. Wednesday.
31.     ALOHA, OR, 6/19/13: Deputies responded to a house in Aloha where the residents reported that someone shot a bullet through their exterior wall. While deputies were investigating the incident, they heard another shot from the neighbor's house. After several hours a woman was arrested for discharging a firearm inside her house.
32.     KNOXVILLE, TN, 6/19/13: Knox County authorities say a man and a woman have been charged with reckless homicide after their 6-month-old daughter died in a shooting, reports CBS affiliate WVLT. The baby girl was reportedly shot early Wednesday afternoon when her parents, Angela Major and Ken Mason, were involved in a domestic dispute. She was pronounced dead at the University of Tennessee Medical Center. This, by the way, is the third time this year that a family in Tennessee has accidentally shot their own baby.
33.     WEST PALM BEACH, FL, 6/20/13: A Coral Springs man is facing charges of carrying a concealed firearm after federal officials found a gun inside his carry-on bag at a Palm Beach International Airport checkpoint Thursday afternoon. Mario Rene Girard Romero, 26, who was traveling to Houston, was arrested by Palm Beach Sheriff deputies. He was released from the Palm Beach County Jail this morning on $4,500 bail. The gun, an unloaded Sig Sauer P 226, was intercepted shortly after 4:30 p.m. Officials also confiscated a magazine with 10 rounds of 9 mm ammunition. The firearm was found inside Romero’s computer bag, which was stored inside his carry-on luggage, according to a PBSO spokesperson, who added that Romero said he forgot to remove the firearm because he was rushing to get to the airport. Weird he was arrested when the other guy wasn't, right? But the article has a picture which might help explain things.
34.     MIRAMAR, FL, 6/20/13: A 14-year-old teenager was shot in the neck during a Miami Heat game celebration on Thursday night. According to the boy's father, they were celebrating inside their Miramar home when a bullet came through the window and struck the boy in the neck.
35.     KELSO, WA, 6/20/13: Kelso police and Cowlitz County sheriff’s deputies wasted some time Thursday fruitlessly searching for a suspect in a drive-by shooting before the supposed victim admitted making up the story, Kelso police said. A detective interviewed Chad Russell Crow, 35, Longview, at St. John Medical Center, where he was awaiting surgery for a gunshot wound to the hand. Initially, Crow claimed to be the victim of a drive-by shooting, police said. The detective told Crow that his wound was obviously inflicted at close range and therefore was inconsistent with his story of being shot by someone in a passing vehicle after his own car broke down. Crow then admitted accidentally shooting himself while examining a gun he was considering buying, the report said.
36.     HOUSTON, TX, 6/20/13: Here's one of those gun success stories with a minor GunFAIL wrapped up inside. A homeowner shot and wounded a suspect he said was allegedly trying to break in to his home early Thursday morning in northwest Harris County. The homeowner heard banging on his back door. He looked outside and saw a man kicking the door. The homeowner, whose name has not been released, grabbed a pistol and opened fire, hitting the man three times. The man has non-life threatening wounds. The homeowner was not injured. One of the bullets fired in the incident hit a neighbor's home. No one in the neighboring home was wounded, but a 14-year-old girl inside was startled by the stray bullet and had a medical issue.
37.     ZAYANTE, CA, 6/21/13: A two-alarm fire is burning in the 9400 block of Zayante Drive where a fire broke out about 5:30 p.m. Friday. At least two buildings including a barn are on fire, according to emergency dispatches. The blaze is spreading into the heavily wooded neighborhood dotted with houses. Firefighters are unable to access the scene because of the ammunition exploding at the fire site.
38.     ROME, GA, 6/21/13: A man accidentally shot himself in the foot at the West Rome Walmart on Friday evening, police said. According to Lt. Louis Johnson of the Rome Police Department, the man was sitting in his truck in the parking lot of the store, located at 2510 Redmond Circle, when the gun accidentally discharged. The man had a license to carry the gun and will not be charged.
39.     EVANSVILLE, IN, 6/21/13: An Evansville girl is recovering after shooting herself in the hand. Evansville police were called to 316 N. 9th at 9:30pm last night and found the 9 year old victim with a gunshot wound to her left hand. Investigators believe GILBERT RICKETTS JR, W/M, 8/7/1964, , was showing his guns to some neighborhood juveniles. RICKETTS had removed the magazine from a .22 caliber rifle and allowed the female victim to handle it, believing the weapon was safe. The rifle discharged, damaging the fingers on the left hand of the victim. The victim was transported to the hospital where it is believed she will likely lose some of her fingers. RICKETTS was arrested and charged with providing a firearm to a juvenile, a C Felony.
40.     PARIS TOWNSHIP, OH, 6/21/13: A 9-year-old boy was shot to death in a Minerva-area relative’s home when he and a 14-year-old cousin were looking at a gun, said Sheriff George T. Maier. Minerva firefighter/paramedics took Matthew J. Schreckengaust, who lives on Eighth Street NE in Canton, to Aultman Hospital. Deputies were told that he had died of the a gunshot wound, the sheriff said.  Deputies believe the child had been visiting relatives when he and his cousin began looking at the gun, which the boys did not know was loaded. “It appears it was an accidental discharge and the 9-year-old boy was struck,” he said. “It’s a tragedy for the family and a tragedy for the community.” The gun belonged to the older boy’s father, but Maier said he did not know whether the gun had been locked up.
41.     SACRAMENTO, CA, 6/22/13: A man accidentally shot himself and his girlfriend just after 1:30 a.m. Saturday morning. According to Sacramento Police, Deandre Smith, 27, was in an alley near the intersection of Freeport Blvd. and Fruitridge Rd. when he accidentally fired his gun. He shot himself in the hand and his girlfriend in the lower body.
42.     BROCKTON, MA, 6/22/13: There was one man shot and one man cited for firearm charges on Elm Avenue early Saturday morning but the two are the same man. Giovanni Simmons, 19, of Brockton, was taken to Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital with a gunshot wound in the leg, said Bonanca.  Police could not confirm that Simmons shot himself in the leg but no one else at 62 Elm Ave. was cited for possession or discharge of a weapon, said Bonanca.

Originally posted to David Waldman on Sat Jun 22, 2013 at 07:52 PM PDT.