Gun Fail 59

Tue Mar 04, 2014 at 02:20 PM PST

It's fun to accidentally discharge your handgun at the Y-M-C-A! GunFAIL LIX

by David Waldman

.

 

Five of 36 guns discovered by TSA agents at airports around the country last week.

.

Since we last visited, and up through last Friday, 15 hearty patriots have accidentally second amendmented themselves. That's 15 of our 40 entries in this installment. And continuing the pattern, several did so while happily and unconcernedly carrying their hand-held instant death machines among you, while out shopping, dining or otherwise enjoying the amenities. Were you in Chipotle in Sandy, Utah, last week? Walmart in Hattiesburg, Mississippi? Sam's Club in Waterloo, Iowa? Perhaps the YMCA in Austin, Texas? Maybe you weren't, but people who were certain they knew how to properly handle their firearms were. And guess where they found out that they weren't really up to the task? Right in the middle of the crowds, of course! Miraculously, only one car window and one ass (anatomically speaking) were damaged. You can thank the Flying Spaghetti Monster that none of the children at their swimming lessons at the Y were shot when mom blew a hole in her purse rummaging around down in Austin. 

.
A few "coincidences" worthy of note this time around: two people accidentally discharged their weapons while giving demonstrations of how safe they were, one lodging a bullet in his living room floor, and one lodging a bullet in a place that stopped him from living and left him on the floor. Last week also saw two young men accidentally shoot their mothers, one in Oconee Co., South Carolina, and one in Dayton, Nevada. And although this one doesn't exactly fit, an Orlando, Florida, man accidentally fired his gun twice while he was cleaning it (of course). His first shot flew through his garage door and into the street, where it blasted a hole in a passing car, and microseconds thereafter, the 12-year-old girl inside it. So flustered by this accident was he that he fired a second shot through his own thigh.
.

There were three "home invasion" shootings, in which civic-minded patriots opt to share their used ammunition with neighbors. The most worthy of note being the Marion, Ohio, accident in which a good guy with a shotgun decided to participate in the prayer meeting in the downstairs apartment. His testimony was witnessed by two of the ladies of the assembly.
.
Outside of those noteworthy items, we saw the usual assortment of accidents. One hunting accident, one accident while "fixing" a gun, one target shooting mishap, one stray bullet shooting, and one cop's gun that went off when it was grabbed by a suspect. And finally, we note that this installment's children of GunFAIL were ages 5, 7, 12, 12, 12, 13, 15 and 17.
.
The rest of our list follows, below the fold.
.

1. MILWAUKEE, WI, 1/16/14: Milwaukee police arrested a 14-year-old boy who was armed with a handgun that he tossed outside the Grand Avenue Mall, where it discharged without hitting anyone. Officers approached the teen to talk about his possible truancy about 11 a.m. Thursday outside the mall in the 200 block of W. Wisconsin Ave., according to a police spokesman. The teen struggled with officers before he was eventually taken into custody. The discarded gun was driven over by a passing vehicle, causing one round to be fired, Lt. Mark Stanmeyer said. In addition to having open warrants for several crimes including burglary and auto theft, the teen is a suspect in an armed robbery and wanted as a runaway from a group home, Stanmeyer said. The teen faces possible charges of resisting and possession of a dangerous weapon by a child.
2. MADISON, TN, 2/10/14: Metro detectives believe a 22-year-old man unintentionally shot and killed his friend during a February shooting in Madison. Police are now trying to find Darius Montez Tate, who was charged with one count of reckless homicide and two counts of attempted first degree murder after he allegedly shot 25-year-old Jamahl Saunders and then opened fire at two other men. On Feb. 10, officers found Saunders lying on the ground next to a gun after they heard multiple gunshots at the 1200 block of Berwick Trail. Police now believe Saunders and Tate had opened fire at two other men who sat in a car across the street when Saunders was shot.
3. ATHENS, TN, 2/17/14: McMinn County investigators are trying to figure out how a woman was shot while driving her car Monday morning. It happened on County Road 139 just before 9 a.m. That's when a bullet flew through the glass, grazing her ear. Sandra Hicks told them it was a stray bullet. Detectives believe there could be more to the story. And that's what they're trying to figure out. "I'm still looking around. I'm scanning through the woods looking around," said neighbor Tommy Buckner about the scare it gave him. Buckner says it's not entirely uncommon for him to hear shots around there. "People hunt in this area, they target practice in this area," he said. "She was in her vehicle, and according to her she heard what sounded like a rock hitting her windshield and at that point she realized she'd been injured. The round came through her window and struck her ear," explained McMinn County Sheriff Joe Guy. The sheriff isn't totally convinced by the stray bullet story. Hicks lives with some family members who they've been interviewing to get to the bottom of what may have happened. "We think there might be some other story that hasn't been told yet," Sheriff Guy said.
4. WOLFE CO., KY, 2/19/14: A man drove from Wolfe County to Lexington after suffering a gunshot wound overnight. UK Hospital staff called police when the man showed up early Wednesday morning. Investigators say it appears the man shot himself unintentionally. Kentucky State Police took over the investigation since the incident happened in Wolfe County. Officials didn't release any information on the man's condition or exactly how he suffered the wound.
5. FORT WAYNE, IN, 2/22/14: A man who was selling a handgun to a family member and who thought the gun was unloaded accidentally shot himself in the chest Saturday night and later died, police said. The accident happened about 8 p.m. Saturday in the man’s home at 1419 Landers Court in Georgetown Place, an upscale development off Maplecrest Road. Medics responded within minutes, but the man was later pronounced dead at the scene.
6. MEMPHIS, TN, 2/22/14: Courtney Hatch was fiddling with a gun in the back seat of a car Saturday night, police said, when he pulled the trigger. The bullet shot out of the gun—which Hatch allegedly thought was unloaded—tore through the front passenger’s seat and buried itself in the back of 17-year-old Kennedra Miles. Hatch and another man in the car took her to an area hospital, but it was too late. Miles didn’t survive, and Hatch has been charged with reckless homicide.
7. GREENEVILLE, TN, 2/22/14: Local law enforcement investigated two accidental shooting incidents over the weekend, one involving a 7-year-old boy. Gage Ricker was injured about 9:15 a.m. Saturday in the 1300 block of Iron Bridge Road, sheriff's Deputy Jeff Caudill said in a report. The boy's father, Leonard Ricker, told deputies he and his 7-year-old son were squirrel hunting in the woods.
8. BROOKVILLE, OH, 2/22/14: Jerry Stanley, Brookville, Ohio: Accidental shooting—Stanley shot himself in the hand while trying to fix his firearm, receiving minor injuries, 4060 Chester Blvd., 4:47 p.m. Saturday.
9. TOPEKA, KS, 2/23/14: A man who may have unlawfully been in possession of a firearm showed up Sunday afternoon at a local hospital with a self-inflicted accidental gunshot wound to the leg, an official with the Topeka Police Department said. Lt. Mike Cross said the 26-year-old man, who is doing all right after the incident, was still at Stormont-Vail Regional Health Center late Sunday evening. The incident happened after the man shot himself in the leg at a house at 2300 S.E. 22nd. Cross said an acquaintance drove him to the hospital. Hospital security called authorities when the man walked into Stormont at 4:13 p.m. The man, whose name hasn’t been released, wasn’t being cooperative with police as he may be a previously convicted felon in possession of a firearm, Cross said, adding he may be taken into custody after being released.
10. PHILADELPHIA, PA, 2/23/14: A woman wound up shot after she got caught in the middle of a fight between two brothers in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood last night. The shooting began as a fistfight between two brothers around 11 p.m. Sunday, according to Philadelphia Police. After the fight, the younger brother went to his girlfriend’s house along the 200 block of E Tioga Street, police said. The man’s 33-year-old brother showed up at the house a short time later looking for his 28-year-old sibling. The older brother then allegedly opened fire on his brother but missed—striking the younger man’s girlfriend three times, according to police. The 22-year-old woman was rushed to temple University Hospital in stable condition. The alleged shooter—who was recently released from prison—fled the scene, according to police.
11. INDEPENDENCE TOWNSHIP, MI, 2/23/14: The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office is investigating what appears to be a self-inflicted shooting death in Independence Township. It happened Sunday night at a home in the 4400 block of Pinedale. The victim’s live-in girlfriend told deputies that her 36-year-old boyfriend had been demonstrating the safety of his three handguns by holding them to his head and pulling the trigger. The third gun fired and he was struck in the head. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene. His name was not immediately released.
12. COLLINSVILLE, IL, 2/23/14: A young man died in what police said may be an accidental shooting Sunday. Andrew Birch, 23, of Collinsville died of a single gunshot wound to the head early Sunday morning. Collinsville police were called to the 600 block of Arrowhead at 1:30 a.m. on reports that someone had been shot. First responders transported Birch to Anderson Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Collinsville Police Maj. Tom Coppotelli said that there were three people located inside the residence along with Birch, and all individuals are cooperating with the investigation. Coppotelli said they are not currently looking for any suspects in the shooting. While nothing has yet been ruled out, Coppotelli said they do not think that Birch's death was a suicide. "We have information that leads us to believe this may have been an accidental shooting," Coppotelli said. The Collinsville Police Department and Madison County Coroner's Office are continuing to investigate Birch's death.
13. SALEM, OR, 2/24/14: An 18-year-old Silverton man was wounded by a ricochet bullet while target shooting with four other teens in a wooded area. The Marion County sheriff’s office said Monday that one of the friends shot a steel target at close range with a high-caliber rifle and the bullet hit the victim in the neck. He was treated at Silverton Hospital and released. The sheriff’s office says no charges will be filed, but it reminds target shooters to follow safety precautions.
14. ROANOKE, VA, 2/24/14: Two men were shot Monday in Roanoke outside of the Rescue Mission Ministries. One of the victims was hit by a stray bullet and was not involved in the argument that led up to the shooting, according to the Roanoke Police Department. Both victims are being treated at Carilion Roanoke Memorial hospital for injuries that are not believed to be life-threatening. No arrests have been made but an active search is taking place, according to the Roanoke Police Department. The shooting happened around 2:55 p.m. Monday afternoon after an argument, which involved one of the victims. According to Roanoke police, a suspect grabbed a gun from a car in front of the Rescue Mission Ministries and began shooting from outside of the car. The second victim appears to have been an unintended victim in the shooting. Rescue Mission Ministries CEO Joy Sylvester-Johnson said the second victim was hit by a stray bullet while leaving the Rescue Mission. The second victim lived at the Rescue Mission. The first victim appears to know the suspect but is not providing detectives with details about the shooting, according to Roanoke police.
15. BIRMINGHAM, AL, 2/24/14: A 6-year-old Birmingham girl accidentally brought a gun to her elementary school this week, Birmingham police said Tuesday. The young girl, police said, didn't know the gun was in her backpack. She discovered it herself when she went to get her snack out, said police spokesman Lt. Sean Edwards. Central Park Elementary School staff notified police Monday. Investigators learned the girl's mother was in a car accident Sunday night in which the car was totaled. While transferring her belongings from the wrecked car to her sister's car, the girl's aunt put the gun in the girl's backpack and seemingly forgot about. The girl stumbled on the gun at lunchtime when she went to get her snack. She immediately told her friend to tell a teacher, Edwards said. The teacher notified office staff and the police were called to the scene. Edwards said no charges will be filed. "It was determined that this was an honest mistake,'' he said.
16. BAYTOWN, TX, 2/24/14: A Baytown man was arrested after his gun discharged while showing his wife it was safe to use. Police were called to an RV park in the 1100 block of Bob Smith Road at 5:55 p.m. Monday after someone reported hearing a shot fired at a trailer home. Once there, the man told officers that he was showing his wife how to safely handle a pistol when it discharged into the living room floor.
17. BLOUNTVILLE, TN, 2/24/14: The Transportation Security Administration discovered two firearms at the checkpoint at Tri-Cities Regional Airport Monday. At approximately 2:28 p.m., a loaded .38 caliber Charter 2000 revolver with five rounds and a loaded .22 caliber Jennings semi-automatic with six rounds were discovered in a passenger’s carry-on bag. TSA said the passenger was cited by local law enforcement.
18. MEMPHIS, TN, 2/25/14: Memphis police arrested a 15-year-old on reckless homicide charges in the accidental shooting death Tuesday of a 13-year-old. The victim, Cartrial Robertson, was shot in the upper chest while the two wrestled over the gun, police said. The shooting occurred minutes before 3 a.m. in the rear bedroom of a home in the 600 block of Hillcrest. Police haven’t said how the teens got the gun or if adults were in the Binghamton-area home at the time. A detention hearing for the suspect is scheduled Wednesday in Shelby County Juvenile Court.
19. PINE HILLS, FL, 2/25/14: Deputies trying to find the person who shot a 15-year-old boy Tuesday in Pine Hills didn't have to go far: He shot himself by accident, then lied about it, the Orange County Sheriff's Office said. Calls reporting the shooting gave different addresses on Silver Star Road, so it took deputies about 15 minutes to find the boy, sheriff's spokeswoman Jane Watrel said. Then they searched for a shooter until the truth came out. The shooting happened in the J-Mart parking lot at the corner of Hiawassee and Silver Star roads. It was reported about 3:20 p.m. The boy is a student at Innovations Middle School, a charter school in the same plaza, Watrel said. He was taken to Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children in Orlando for treatment of a high-caliber gunshot wound to his thigh. The teen could face a weapons-possession charge when he is discharged, Watrel said.
20. BOARDMAN, OH, 2/25/14: Boardman police, fire and emergency personnel responded to a home on Carter Circle at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday for a woman who accidentally shot herself in the leg. The 24-year-old woman told police she was dusting when she dropped her husband’s .45 caliber semi-automatic Glock she was attempting to move it. She attempted to catch the gun and grabbed it by the trigger, causing it to fire and hit her in the calf. The woman was transferred to St. Elizabeth Health Center in downtown. The gun and three other guns were taken by a family member for safekeeping.
21. NIAGARA FALLS, NY, 2/25/14: Falls police say a woman was shot and wounded after another woman grabbed at the gun of a narcotics detective during an incident in the area of 27th Street and Orleans Avenue Tuesday night. Police Superintendent Bryan DalPorto confirmed the shooting which occurred around 8:30 p.m. The woman’s wounds are not believed to be life-threatening. The detective was not injured. DalPorto said the suspect attempted to dive out a window of the home but was taken into custody. Then as detectives attempted to “clear” others in the house, they encountered two women. “One of the women began to fight with a detective and his gun accidentally went off,” DalPorto said. The bullet grazed the leg of the second woman. “Her injuries do not appear to be serious,” DalPorto said. An infant inside the home was not inured during the incident.
22. OKEECHOBEE, FL, 2/25/14: An Indiana man who was in stable condition yesterday after he was accidentally shot in the stomach by a .45 caliber handgun will not be pressing charges. Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Office say the victim and his friends were apparently at a hunting camp on the prairie when the accident took place, the Okeechobee News reported. When questioned by investigators, witnesses at the hunting camp said the shooting was an accident. The shooter, a 68 year old man, and the victim were reportedly laughing at the scene. The victim told police "it was horseplay and that accidents happen."
23. HATTIESBURG, MS, 2/25/14: A man has been charged for discharging a gun in the parking lot of the Walmart on Highway 49 in Hattiesburg. According to authorities, Gerrel Rhodes accidentally discharged a gun in his car Tuesday afternoon, shattering the window of his vehicle. No one was hurt in the incident, and the man is being charged with discharging a weapon within city limits.
24. LOUISVILLE, KY, 2/25/14: A woman is charged after police said she barged into a west Louisville convenience store waving a handgun at customers and staff. Police said the loaded weapon was later found in the backseat of a vehicle, next to a toddler. A short time later, police apprehended Marhsall across the street attempting to get into a vehicle. An officer saw her make a throwing motion with her arm when she saw police. According to arrest records, officers found a loaded .25 caliber semi-automatic pistol next to a 22-month-old child in the backseat of the vehicle. Marshall is charged with five counts of wanton endangerment, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and tampering with physical evidence.
25. DANVILLE, CA, 2/25/14: A 12-year-old Danville boy was injured after he was allegedly playing with a gun. The Danville Police Department says the boy accidentally shot himself at his home on Tuesday. KTVU obtained a recording of the 911 call made by the boy’s mother around 4:50 p.m. "Requesting police response ... RP calling 911 advising her son accidentally shot himself in the arm, RP is an off-duty officer, she has secured the gun, son is 12 years of age, its accidental shooting, he’s awake and breathing." The dispatcher mentions the person who reported the incident was an off-duty officer and a source, within the Oakland Police Department told KTVU the boy’s parents are both officers with OPD. The source goes on to say that the boy was staying with his mom Tuesday and that he was “playing with the gun when he shot himself in the arm.” Danville Police Lt. Allan Shields said the boy accidentally shot himself, and that he was released from the hospital. Lt. Shields declined to answer where the boy got the loaded gun and if it was an Oakland Police issued firearm. Shields did say the case was sent to the Contra Costa County District Attorney's office for review.
26. OCONEE CO., SC, 2/26/14: A woman was airlifted to an Upstate hospital after being shot by her son, according to the Oconee County Sheriff's Office. Deputies responded to a shooting on Rock Crusher Road Wednesday afternoon, public information officer Jimmy Watt said. A woman inside the home suffered a gunshot wound to the leg, according to Watt. Deputies said their investigation determined that the woman's adult son was walking through the kitchen with a loaded gun when it accidentally discharged. The victim was airlifted to Greenville Memorial Hospital.  Her condition is not being released. Deputies say the son will not be charged in the case.
27. SANDY, UT, 2/26/14: A scary moment inside a Sandy restaurant when a man paying for his food drops a bag and a gun goes off. It happened just before 1:30 Wednesday afternoon at the Chipotle near 104th South State Street. Sandy Police say the man removed his backpack to pay for his meal and accidentally dropped it. When the bag hit the floor, the handgun he had inside accidentally discharged. Luckily the bullet hit the floor and lodged into the concrete. The man with the gun reportedly picked up the backpack and the shell casing, got his lunch and then waited outside for police. Sandy Police Sgt. Jon Arnold said, "The individual is a conceal carry permit holder. He had the gun legally and lawfully." Sgt. Arnold says because it was an accident, and because no one was hurt, the man was not cited.
28. WATERLOO, IA, 2/26/14: A Dike man was injured when he accidentally shot himself while shopping in Waterloo Wednesday. According to police, 50-year-old David Kugel was removing his handgun to store in his vehicle in the parking lot of Sam’s Club, 210 E. Tower Park Drive, at about 6 p.m. when he weapon fired. The bullet struck Kugel in the buttocks, causing a minor wound, according to the police report. Kugel then drove home, where a family member persuaded him to seek medical attention. He was treated at Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo. Capt. Tim Pillack said Kugel had the proper permit to carrying the weapon.
29. UHRICHSVILLE, OH, 2/26/14: Union Hospital personnel reported Wednesday to Tuscarawas County Sheriff’s deputies that an 81-year-old Uhrichsville man was treated in the emergency room for an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound. Deputies said the man told them he was loading his .22-caliber revolver, with the hammer partially cocked so he could rotate the cylinder, when his thumb slipped off the hammer and the gun discharged. The bullet grazed the man’s thigh and he received four stitches, deputies noted.
30. PORTLAND, ME, 2/27/14: Portland police are investigating an accidental shooting in which a person mishandled a gun and was shot in the hand. The incident happened at about 3:30 p.m. Thursday on Cornell Street, in the Morrill’s Corner neighborhood. Police and rescue workers were called to a reported shooting and determined it was accidental. The person was cleaning the gun and it fired, police said.
31. DAYTON, NV, 2/27/14: A woman was transported to a hospital after her son's gun accidentally went off and shot her. According to the Sergeant with the Lyon County Sheriff Dayton Substation, on Thursday, February 27, 2014, a young man was showing his new gun to his father. The young man pulled the gun out of the holster when it went off and shot his mother in the leg, according to the sergeant. The woman was transported by Careflight to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno. Careflight arrived on scene around 3:40 p.m., according to an official with Careflight. According to an official with Careflight, the woman's injuries are critical. No one was taken into custody.
32. MARION, OH, 2/27/14: Two women are recovering after being accidentally shot at a prayer meeting. Lt. Ed Brown, with the Marion Police Department, said a shotgun was accidentally fired in an upstairs room around 4:25 p.m. Thursday in a home at 423 S. Prospect St. The shotgun blast came through the ceiling and struck two women in the room below. One elderly woman was struck in the right leg, right forearm and cheek. A middle-aged woman was struck in the right leg. None of the injuries appeared to be life-threatening, Brown said. Both women were taken to Marion General Hospital by a Marion City Fire Department ambulance. The building was a duplex with separate residences upstairs and downstairs. Both parties were in the front rooms of the home. Terry Thacker, 59, of Marion, was charged with two counts of negligent assault in the shooting.
33. WASHINGTON, DC, 2/27/14: A man shot himself in the leg in an apparent accident Thursday afternoon in the parking garage of the homeland security campus in Southeast Washington, according to police. The incident occurred about 4:55 p.m. in the 2700 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Ave., across from St. Elizabeths Hospital. Authorities said the shooting occurred on part of the campus that is used by federal agencies. Police would not immediately say whether the man is connected to a law enforcement agency. The man’s condition was not known, but police said the wound does not appear to be life threatening. The man was taken to an area hospital for treatment.
34. AUSTIN, TX, 2/27/14: A woman accidentally discharged her gun on Thursday while she was watching her children’s swim lesson at the YMCA. Buda police arrived at the YMCA at about 8:30 p.m. and found the woman, Kamila Brudi, waiting for them outside. According to the police report, Brudi said she was rummaging through her purse when she accidentally set off the .38 caliber Derringer pistol. She said she usually keeps the pistol in her car for self defense but forgot to take it out of her purse before going into the YMCA. The police report says she immediately reported the shot to the manager when she saw people around her were curious as to what caused the loud noise. Police said Brudi did not have the weapon in a holster. Officers saw no intent to discharge the weapon, so they issued her a citation for Discharge of Firearm where Prohibited – a city ordinance violation.
35. CASTRO VALLEY, CA, 2/27/14: Four men have been in arrested in connection with Thursday’s brazen shooting along Interstate 580. Bullets flew on the freeway, and also above it creating a close call for one nearby resident. The shooting happened along 580 in Castro Valley and shut down traffic at the height of the evening commute for half an hour.  It also created quite the scare for Justin Detro, whose SUV was shot at, and Lauren Kreiss, whose home was hit by stray bullets. "I'm very very lucky where it decided to land," says Lauren Kreiss. A stray bullet flew through Kreiss's sliding glass door and embedding in her apartment wall. "It's a little crazy that it was at random, especially all the way from the freeway," she says. Kreiss lives on a hill above the freeway and far enough from the shooting scene that she couldn't even see it. Investigators say the bullet was one of several fired from a silver sedan yesterday along 580. At least seven others struck the SUV Detro was driving. "It seems like if people pull guns on someone its usually a pissed off thing, but these guys are laughing like they've done it before," says Detro.
36. OPELOUSAS, LA, 2/27/14: A 5-year-old Opelousas boy suffered life-threatening injuries in an early evening shooting Thursday. Events surrounding the incident, which happened at about 4:20 p.m., were not immediately clear. Police said they were initially told it was a drive-by shooting, but that appeared to be an erroneous account later in the investigation. The boy suffered a single gunshot wound to his head in the front yard of his home in the 500 block of Martin Luther King Drive, just down the street from North Elementary School. “We’re not ruling (the drive-by) out, but the investigation has taken a different direction,” Opelousas Police Chief Perry Gallow said. The victim was initially taken to Opelousas General Health System before being airlifted to Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge. Gallow characterized the wound as “life-threatening.” Police recovered a .22-caliber long-barreled revolver, thought to have been the one used in the shooting. The weapon was found beneath the front porch of the home. Friends, family and other witnesses are being interviewed for details on the shooting. Officers at the scene said information gleaned after the initial report indicated the shooting may have been an accident, resulting from children playing with guns. Gallow said he couldn’t comfortably label the incident as an accidental or deliberate shooting. “There are a lot of unanswered questions,” he said. UPDATE: Five-year-old Jon-Qualon Pitre, critically injured when he was shot in the head in an incident at his home Thursday, was taken off life support and died at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge Saturday.
37. ORLANDO, FL, 2/28/14: Orlando police said a 12-year-old girl was struck with a bullet while she was in a car, from a gun that was accidentally discharged in a nearby house around 7:43 p.m. Friday. Police said an adult male was handling a gun inside a home near the Beachline and Daetwyler Drive when it accidentally discharged. The man was struck in the thigh, while the young girl, who was a passenger in a car traveling on the same street, was struck in the arm. Both victims were transported to nearby hospitals for minor injuries. UPDATE: Orlando police said Ventura Mateo, 50, said he was showing a friend how to clean his SIG Sauer handgun. Mateo told investigators he pulled back on the slide and put his hand on the trigger, accidentally firing the weapon. Mateo told police that around the same time he became flustered and fired a second round, hitting himself in the thigh.
38. INDIANAPOLIS, IN, 2/28/14: A 12-year-old boy is recovering after accidentally firing a gun and injuring himself. Police were called to Community East Hospital just before 10:30 Friday night after family members took the boy to the emergency room. The mother of the boy told police she arrived at her father’s home to pick up the child when she saw he was bleeding. The grandfather of the boy told police that he was running an errand and left the boy and five other children in his car unattended. When he got back to the car, he found out that his grandson had accidentally shot himself. The boy told police he found the gun in the car and thinking it was a BB gun, started playing with it. He then accidentally discharged the gun and shot himself. None of the other children were hurt. The boy’s condition is unknown at this time.
39. MACON, GA, 2/28/14: A man is charged with involuntary manslaughter after accidentally shooting his cousin in the back and killing him, according to a Bibb County sheriff's news release citing witness accounts. The victim, Cedric Recardo Patrick Jr., 21 years old, was shot Friday night at 10:15 p.m. while sitting in the front seat of a car in a Taco Bell restaurant parking lot at 1090 Eisenhower Parkway. According to others in the car, the suspect, Dominick Kantrel Howell Sr., 27, was sitting in the back seat with a pistol in his lap. When the pistol fell, he tried to catch it and the gun accidentally fired, shooting his cousin in the back. Howell turned himself in to investigators after Patrick was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead around 11 p.m. Howell is being held without bond at the Bibb County jail.
40. WELLFORD, SC, 2/28/14: Deputies in Spartanburg County said they are investigating a shooting that damaged an apartment in the Wellford area. Deputies said they were called to a duplex on Fort Prince Boulevard on Friday night, where a woman living there told deputies she heard a loud boom earlier in the day but was unable to identify the source. The woman said her husband later discovered damage to a dresser drawer, a bullet inside and bullet holes in the wall behind the dresser. Deputies said they bullet appeared to have come through the wall from the neighboring unit. Deputies said they attempting contacting the victims' neighbors but were unsuccessful.

.

Originally posted to David Waldman on Tue Mar 04, 2014 at 02:20 PM PST.