Eight of 32 guns discovered by TSA agents in the last week.
There were also some incidents of special note this week. A Lancaster, Ohio, incident in which a gun safety instructor teaching a concealed weapons carry qualification course accidentally shot one of the students in his class. (I wonder if the student, an aspiring elementary school teacher, will have any thoughts about the risk of accidents that might arise from arming teachers in the classroom.) A Dana Point, California, man who bought himself a brand-new AR-15 and accidentally put a round through his apartment wall and shot a neighbor in the head with it. And the young woman in Pennsylvania who, having once been witness to a mass shooting, later bought herself a gun for self-protection, but was killed with that gun the very day she bought it.
Two other incidents of note implicate other current questions of gun policy. In Alabama, a new law went into effect on August 1st which allows employees to bring their guns to work. For those wondering how long it would take for Alabama employees to start accidentally shooting one another at work, the answer is at hand: 12 days. And for those pondering the wisdom of expanding the rights of college students to bring their guns with them to campus (given their proclivity for binge drinking), Western Washington University provides this week's anecdote weighing against.
Mercifully few child victims of GunFAIL this week, although it seems we'll have to reconsider the search parameters and criteria for inclusion on the list to include more stray bullet shootings. Originally, GunFAIL was chiefly about those accidents in which no one had any intention to fire their weapon at all. But that's obviously expanded as we witnessed more, and more types, of incidents that call the many widely-held beliefs about the value of guns into question. With the numbers mounting, there's really no reason not to start counting stray bullet shootings of innocent bystanders, even when the shooter intentionally fires the weapon.
Below the fold, this week's list.
- FLINT, MI, 8/05/13: A woman and another bystander were shot after a friend was showing off his new gun, according to a police report. The woman told police her friend was showing off his new hand gun on Monday, Aug. 5 just before 4 PM at a location on Arlington Avenue. She said as her friend was trying to disengage a round from the chamber, the gun went off. According to the report, the woman was shot in the knee and another victim was shot in the toe.
- ALEXANDRIA, VA, 8/06/13: A subject accidently shot himself in the finger while attempting to clean his gun in the 3800 block of Milan Drive.
- GREENFIELD, WI, 8/07/13: A man called police after he accidentally fired his 9mm gun inside his apartment in the 10100 block of West Cold Spring Road at 1:05 PM Aug. 7. The man was cleaning the weapon when he fired one round into the ceiling. He was ordered to see the district attorney, but no charges were issued.
- PALM COAST, FL, 8/08/13: A 40-year-old man was hospitalized after he mishandled a revolver and shot himself in the finger, deputies said. Shane A. Dennis of Palm Coast was struck on the pinky finger, deputies said. Dennis works at Palm Coast Pawn & Jewelry, 1490 Palm Coast Parkway. He was expected to return to work Friday afternoon, a store employee said over the phone. Dennis was handling his gun—a Rossi .38-caliber revolver—when it discharged, according to the Sheriff’s Office. He told deputies the hammer to his gun was probably partially cocked when it snapped forward unexpectedly and caused the revolver to fire. Sheriff’s deputies viewed security camera footage and saw the gun go off in Dennis’ hands and watched him take off his shirt, wrap it around his hand and leave the office, according to the report.
- IRONDALE, OH, 8/08/13: Michael Mitchell, 38, told Sheriff Fred Adballa the shooting of his girlfriend, Marie Cantwell was an accident. Abdalla told the judge during an interview that Mitchell was “twirling” the gun in the bedroom of Cantwell at 3 AM on Aug. 8. Mitchell then said that the gun accidentally went off, hitting Cantwell in the temperal lobe. Mitchell claims that sometimes when he can’t sleep he will shoot pop cans at night with his gun.
- TUCSON, AZ, 8/09/13: A 15-year-old Tucson boy who brought a gun to Pueblo Magnet High School is facing several charges and expulsion after the firearm accidentally discharged in a bathroom stall Friday. Around 10:30 AM a school monitor heard a shot fired in the bathroom and when the boy came out, he was escorted to the office and police were called, said Sgt. Maria Hawke, a Tucson Police Department spokeswoman. Nothing was seriously damaged, and nobody was hurt when the gun went off, Hawke said. "We believe he was playing with the handgun, and it accidentally discharged," Rene said. "The weapon was not being pointed at anyone or anything."
- JOPLIN, MO, 8/10/13: A Granby woman was in critical condition Saturday afternoon and a Joplin man is in jail after an apparent accidental shooting early Saturday morning at a home on the eastern edge of Jasper County. Jasper County Sheriff's Capt. Derek Walrod said Kelly Crawford, 24, Granby, was in critical condition at an unknown hospital after the shooting that happened at between midnight and 1 AM Saturday. Walrod said Windell Douglas “Doug” Daniels, 31, Joplin, was arrested at the home on County Road 10 about two miles north of Missouri Highway 96, on suspicion of second degree assault and armed criminal action. Walrod said investigators believe Daniels mishandled a handgun, causing the gun to accidentally go off, striking Crawford in the back of the head. Walrod said the two were with a group of friends at the home and had been shooting at targets before the incident. UPDATE: She didn't make it.
- SPRINGDALE, OH, 8/10/13: Police say that a victim was taken to the hospital for treatment after an alleged accidental shooting at an auto shop on Saturday. The Springdale Police Department responded Princeton Tire at 11515 Princeton Pike for a person shot around 12:15 PM.
- LINCOLN HEIGHTS, OH, 8/10/13: A child was rushed to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital on Saturday after an accidental shooting inside a Lincoln Heights home. Paramedics were called to the 1000 block of Jackson Street at about noon after a caller told an emergency dispatcher that a little girl had shot herself. The child had already been transported to the hospital before emergency personnel arrived at the scene.
- LANCASTER, OH, 8/10/13: A gun-safety class in Fairfield County for people seeking permits to carry concealed weapons went wrong on Saturday when the instructor accidentally shot a student. Terry J. Dunlap Sr., who runs a shooting range and training center at 6995 Coonpath Rd. near Lancaster, was demonstrating a hand gun in the classroom when he fired a .38-caliber bullet that ricocheted off a desk and into student Michael Piemonte’s right arm. Dunlap, 73, also is a long-time Violet Township trustee who is running for re-election in November. Dunlap apparently didn’t know that the gun held a bullet, Piemonte said. Piemonte said he is studying for his teaching degree at Ohio State University’s Newark campus, and plans to teach elementary school. He said he and his wife, who already has her teaching degree, decided to apply for concealed-carry permits for their own general safety and not specifically for classroom safety.
- JARBRIDGE, NV, 8/10/13: A sheriff’s deputy accidentally shot himself in the wrist while cleaning his gun over the weekend, according to Undersheriff Clair Morris. Deputy Mike Moore and another deputy, who were assigned to patrol northern Elko County for Jarbidge Days, had downtime Saturday afternoon and decided to clean their vehicles and their guns. “(Moore) dropped the magazine, and I guess he had his finger on the trigger,” Morris said. A bullet in the department-issued .40-caliber Glock’s chamber discharged into the deputy’s wrist. “They had to put some pins in his wrist,” Morris said. The sheriff’s office expects Moore to make a full recovery. “He’ll be OK,” Morris said. Law enforcement occasionally become relaxed around firearms because they are a routine part of the job and uniform, Morris added. “We handle guns every day,” he said, “but it’s something we need to pay attention to.”
- BRIDGEPORT, CT, 8/10/13: A Bloomfield man accidentally shot himself in the groin early Saturday morning in the North End, police said. Police found the victim, who was not identified, at Saint Vincent's Medical Center at 3:30 AM Saturday and learned that his injury appeared self-inflicted, city police spokesman William Kaempffer said. Officers then responded to Edgemore Road and found the victim's car, which they entered with the help of firefighters and found a loaded .40-caliber handgun and other evidence, Kaempffer said. The gun, which the victim had a license to carry, was taken to police headquarters. No charges were filed.
- ST. PAUL, MN, 8/10/13: The shooting death of a 20-year-old St. Paul Park man over the weekend was apparently accidental. Regino “Gino” M. Nitti was identified as the victim of the shooting at an apartment reported at 1:45 AM Saturday, and a preliminary investigation has found that an acquaintance of Nitti’s accidentally shot him, according to Mike Monahan, St. Paul Park police chief. Guns were found at the apartment in the 1100 block of Fifth Street about a block from Oltman Middle School, and the case remains under investigation.
- FAIRBANKS, AK, 8/10/13: Alaska State Troopers say a woman suffered a gunshot wound after a fight broke out at a party in Fairbanks. Troopers spokeswoman Beth Ipsen says the woman, whose name has not been released, was not involved in the fight, and the wound is not considered life-threatening. Ipsen says the fight started early Saturday at an outdoor area that is popular with young people who have bonfire-type parties. Investigators have yet to charge anyone with the shooting. One man at the party—22-year-old Aaron Hodges of Fort Wainwright—was charged with misdemeanor weapons misconduct.
- PORTAGE, IN, 8/10/13: A man who claimed he was shot at a local gas station Saturday afternoon now is accused of lying to police. "After detectives conducted the investigation, it was determined that the male victim lied about where the shooting actually occurred," Portage police Sgt. Keith Hughes said Thursday in a written statement. Apparently, the 33-year-old man was shot when a pistol an acquaintance was handling accidentally discharged at a home in Portage. The man was struck in the chest with the bullet and required surgery. As a result of the investigation, false informing charges have been filed against the victim and the charges are currently waiting to be reviewed by the prosecutor's office," said Hughes, adding the person who was in possession of the pistol is not being charged.
- YACOLT, WA, 8/11/13: A man died after accidentally shooting himself in the face Sunday on a rural road near Yacolt, Wash. The 26-year-old was reportedly looking for his lost dog with his girlfriend when he slipped on some rocks near Yacolt Falls. He was carrying a gun, which went off, deputies with the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said.
- TECUMSEH, KS, 8/11/13: Two people were injured — at least one of them critically — in a shooting around 1:20 PM Sunday. The Shawnee County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene at 7610 S.E. US-40 highway, a grassy plot of land with a trailer on it that officers said wasn’t being used as a residence. Six or seven people, including the landowner and one minor, were on the lot practicing shooting with a handgun when the incident happened, Harmon said. Witnesses told officers the shooting was an accident and the people involved thought the gun was empty of bullets.
- SUNRISE BEACH, MO, 8/11/13: Sunrise Beach man was flown to the University of Missouri Medical Center in Columbia for treatment after suffering from gun shot wounds while cleaning out his gun. Camden County deputies responded to the Sunrise Beach area to a report of a male subject who had been shot on Sunday, Aug. 11. When officers arrived on the scene, an investigation determined the shooting was accidental. The investigation revealed the victim had been cleaning his revolver when it accidently discharged striking him in the abdomen.
- RICHARDSON, TX, 8/11/13: A Richardson man accidentally shot his elderly wife Sunday night while the pair were watching TV, Richardson police said. Police responded to a call about the shooting at about 9:20 PM Sunday at a local hospital where the couple had gone for medical treatment. The couple had been sitting on the couch in their home in the 2300 block of Shady Creek Drive when the man accidentally fired his Colt .380 Mustang, Richardson police spokesman Sgt. Kevin Perlich said. A bullet struck the woman’s abdomen but did not seriously injure her. After the shooting, the couple drove to a local hospital, where police responded, Perlich said.
- NASHVILLE, TN, 8/11/13: An 11-year-old is shot by a family friend in north Nashville. The boy received a gunshot wound to his right leg at his home at the 1700 block of 10th Avenue North at around 9:30 PM on Sunday, according to Metro police. He went to Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt Medical Center for treatment of non-life threatening injuries. Detectives are investigating to determine if shooting is accidental. The victim’s mother was home when the shooting took place.
- BULLSKIN TOWNSHIP, PA, 8/11/13: Police said [a] Connellsville man was arrested Sunday after he accidentally shot and killed his cousin with her own gun after she told him it wasn't loaded. Jeremy Hamborsky, 24, was free Monday on $50,000 bond. State police in Uniontown said he faces a charge of involuntary manslaughter. The suspect's family said Kylie Marie Sage, 23, and her friend were sitting in a pickup truck with Hamborsky and his girlfriend when the shooting happened shortly before 2:30 AM in Bullskin Township. Police said the vehicle was parked on North Bell View Road, and Sage was showing Hamborsky a gun she bought earlier in the day. Police said Hamborsky told them that he was sitting in the passenger seat when Sage handed the weapon to him. He asked her if it was loaded and, after she said it wasn't, he moved the pistol's slide and the gun fired a shot, police said. [Family friend Dan] Martucci said the woman believed in self-protection and was permitted to carry a gun.
- TAHLEQUAH, OK, 8/11/13: Cherokee County sheriff’s investigators are looking into the death of a man who was found Monday morning in his camper along the Illinois River. Cherokee County Undersheriff Jason Chennault said investigators do not suspect foul play in the death of Greg Lane, 55, who was found in his camper at Eagle Bluff sometime after 7 AM Deputy Dexter Scott and Investigator James Brown responded to the scene, along with EMS, and found Lane’s body with a pistol and a shotgun in the camper. Chennault said it appears Lane was cleaning the handgun when it fired, and the bullet struck him in the chest. Investigators said the shooting likely occurred Sunday night.
- LOOMIS, NE, 8/11/13: A 22-year-old Loomis Man suffered a minor leg injury following an accidental shooting at a Loomis residence early Sunday afternoon. Phelps County Sheriff's Cap. Travis Horner says the man was cleaning a pistol at the time. The bullet passed through his leg.
- HUNTSVILLE, AL, 8/12/13: Two people are in the hospital this morning following an accidental shooting during a gun exchange in the parking lot of their place of work. Huntsville police and HEMSI responded to a call at Sharp Communications, located at 3403 Governors Drive, just before 10 AM. "I'm not clear if they were selling a gun or exchanging a gun, something like that," CEO Trey Sharp said. "It went through one employee's hand into the other employee's abdomen. It appears they will both be fine." Alabama passed a new gun law last year allowing employees to bring loaded handguns to the workplace as long as the firearms are kept in the vehicle. The law went into effect Aug. 1.
- ROCK HILL, SC, 8/12/13: A teenager who told police he was shot in a Rock Hill park accidentally shot himself, according to the Rock Hill Police Department. The 19-year-old boy went to Piedmont Medical Center Monday afternoon with a gunshot wound. He originally told police that he was shot near Grove Park, which is near White Street. Police said after investigating, they found that story to be false. Around 3 PM, police said they had determined the teen had accidentally shot himself, and that the incident did not happen at or near the park.
- CHICAGO, IL, 8/12/13: About 6:20 PM in the West Pullman neighborhood on the Far South Side, a 17-year-old boy apparently accidentally shot himself in the groin in the 11600 block of South Wentworth Avenue, police said. The teenager was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where his condition had stabilized, Langford said.
- BLUEWELL, WV, 8/12/13: A shooting in Mercer County is being called accidental, according to the West Virginia State Police Princeton Detachment. A male subject suffered a self-inflicted gunshot wound by using a new handgun. The incident occurred approximately 9 PM Monday on Quail Road off Lorton Lick Road, said Trooper E.C. Graham. “He was messing with a new .40 caliber handgun, when he shot himself in the leg,” Graham said.
- GREEN VALLEY, AZ, 8/12/13: A 36-year-old man is recovering Monday night after his 3-year-old son accidentally shot him in the buttocks. Battalion Chief Tom Louis said the accident happened Monday night in a desert area near Green Valley, Arizona around 6:30 PM. According to Louis, the man was target shooting with his son when the boy unintentionally shot him with a .22 caliber rifle. "This incident illustrates the importance of using exceptional caution whenever children are allowed around guns," said Louis.
- PRESCOTT VALLEY, AZ, 8/12/13: A Prescott Valley man is dead as a result of what police say was an apparently accidental shooting involving a shotgun being handled by his wife. Police say 56-year-old Gary Wingate was fatally wounded in the torso when the gun discharged as his wife handed it to him at his request. According to police, Wingate's wife wasn't comfortable handling a firearm but told police she did what her husband asked. The shooting occurred Monday afternoon at the couple's home.
- GREENPORT, NY, 8/13/13: A 72-year-old Greenport woman accidentally shot herself in the hand Saturday while emptying a pistol, according to a Southold Town police report. Jacqueline Wolfson told police she was attempting to unload a .38 Smith & Wesson pistol registered to her late spouse when a bullet discharged and struck her hand around noon, according to a police report. Ms. Wolfson, who told police she’s in the process of changing the gun’s registration into her own name, drove herself to Eastern Long Island Hospital, where she was treated for minor injuries. Police emptied the gun and are holding it at headquarters in Peconic, according to the report.
- DANA POINT, CA, 8/13/13: A Dana Point woman was shot in the head but is expected to survive after her neighbor's gun accidentally went off. The incident happened at an apartment complex on the 25600 block of Quail Run at about 10 PM Tuesday. The Orange County Sheriff's Department said that a man who lives in the complex was cleaning his gun when a single round discharged. The bullet hit the woman, who lives in another part of the building. The wounded woman was transported to an area hospital to be treated for a graze wound to the forehead. The man who was cleaning his gun is not facing any charges. UPDATE: The local Patch site reports that the gun in question was a brand-new purchase. And some of you might find it of interest to note that it was an AR-15.
- BAKERSFIELD, CA, 8/13/13: A woman is recovering in the hospital this afternoon after her husband accidentally shot her in the leg, according to reports. On August 13, firefighters with the Kern County Fire Department and deputies with the Kern County Sheriff's Officer went to Barnett and Circle Way regarding a shooting. When officers arrived they learned that an 80-year-old man unloading his .45 took the mag out and reportedly forgot he had one in the chamber. According to reports, he then accidentally shot his 79-year-old wife in the leg.
- PHILADELPHIA, PA, 8/13/13: Four men are hospitalized after a wild shootout Tuesday night on the streets of Kingsessing. SkyFOX was over the 1100 block of Divinity Street just before 10 PM. Police say nearly 30 shots were fired from three different guns. One man accidentally shot himself twice in the groin when pulling out his gun, says investigators.
- KEARNS, UT, 8/13/13: Here's a story that's one part GunFAIL, one part GunSUCCESS. A homeowner confronted a burglar Tuesday and fired a shot at him, but the burglar took away his weapon and ran off, police say. The incident happened about 1:30 PM at 4359 W. Tidwell St. (5940 South) when a man cut through a window screen and crawled inside the house, said Unified police detective Jared Richardson. The homeowner, a man in his 60s, was in his basement when he heard noises upstairs, Richardson said. He grabbed his handgun, went upstairs and found the intruder disassembling electronic equipment. "The suspect tries to get up and leave, the homeowner tells him, 'No.' They get into an altercation," Richardson said. A fight ensued with the homeowner ending up on his back and the alleged intruder on top of him. That's when the homeowner, "in fear of his life," fired a shot at the burglar, Richardson said. The shot missed. The intruder responded by taking the gun away from the man and running out the door.
- CHELTENHAM TOWNSHIP, PA, 8/14/13: A firefighter reportedly shot himself in the hand with a firearm at La Mott Fire Station Number 2 in Elkins Park shortly after 9 PM, according to a report. The firefighter was only identified as a 22-year-old man who reportedly shot himself accidentally at the volunteer fire company in the Cheltenham Township neighborhood, according to the Breaking News Network.
- POSEY CO., IN, 8/15/13: An Evansville man is grazed in the head by a bullet during a hunting trip. This accidental shooting happened at Hovey Lake just after 8:00 Thursday morning. Indiana DNR officials say 64-year-old Michael Edwards was squirrel hunting with Roy Hall. They say Hall then tried to shoot a squirrel but the bullet ricocheted and grazed Edward's head. Officers tell us the victim refused to go to the hospital.
- AMARILLO, TX, 8/15/13: Officers were called to a shooting Thursday night right across the street from the night club where a man was found beat to death Monday morning, but no criminal investigation ensued. Right now police are investigating Thursday evening's incident as a "public accident case" though two people were sent to the hospital. It happened just after 6:00 PM at Erwin's Pawn shop on 10th Street right across from the Chakalozas night club. Police say one round was accidentally fired. Two people were taken to the hospital with minor injuries. Jeff Tormey, Erwin Pawn shop's attorney, said the gun fired was a glock handgun belonging to a store employee. He said the gun fell to the ground and went off as the employee tried to pick it back up. "It's not unusual. This is a pawn shop, they deal in a lot of gold and jewelry and firearms and it's not uncommon for those kinds of establishments here in town to have their employees armed," Tormey said. Tormey said he believes the bullet fragmented into several pieces when it hit the ground, hitting two or three people. Only two were transported to the hospital. Police say no criminal charges are likely to be filed.
- SALEM, OR, 8/15/13: A Salem teenager is recovering tonight after he was accidentally shot by one his friends. The Marion County Sheriff's Office says the shooter is only 11 years old and could be in some serious trouble. The shooting happened Thursday around 5:40 PM on the 4800 block of Pennsylvania Avenue Southeast. It was a night of hanging out with friends that almost turned deadly for Jesse Arredondo, 14. He says he was in his garage with his brother and two other friends Thursday evening, when deputies say, one of those friends, an 11-year-old, came over to show off his dad's semi-automatic handgun. "I was just folding clothes and he pulled it out and started playing with it and it went off," said Jesse. Deputies interviewed the father of the 11-year-old, and he told them the gun is normally stored in a gun safe at their home. He didn't know how his son got ahold of the weapon.
- WHITE EARTH, MN, 8/15/13: Becker County Sheriff’s deputies responded Thursday night to what appears to have been an accidental shooting. Becker County Sheriff Kelly Shannon said in a news release that deputies responded to a report of a drive-by shooting at about 8:20 PM Thursday. When they arrived on the scene, they found the victim, Kristopher Lee Villebrun, 28, had been shot in the upper part of his leg. Shannon said there was no evidence to support the claim that the shooting was a drive-by. It appears Villebrun accidentally shot himself, the sheriff said.
- BELLINGHAM, WA, 8/16/13: Bellingham Police say a Western Washington University student died Friday after accidentally shooting himself in the head while playing with a gun he thought was unloaded. The Bellingham Herald reports (http://is.gd/... ) 22-year-old Justin Small died after being taken to St. Joseph Hospital. Roommates told police the semi-automatic handgun had been locked in a safe that belonged to a roommate who had recently moved out. They had been drinking when one of them found the key and opened it. Police say the roommates had been taking pictures with another weapon and Small had been playing with the handgun. One roommate says he warned Small several time to check if the gun was loaded. Sgt. Shawn Aiumu says police are investigating the incident but they are labeling it an accident.
No comments:
Post a Comment