A three-year old Arlington, Texas boy died today in yet another tragic gun cleaning accident.  According to police, an “adult relative” was cleaning a gun when it fired and shot both the boy and the person who had been cleaning the gun.   That person suffered non-life threatening injuries.  The toddler died at the hospital.  No charges have been filed. 

It is unclear why Arlington police are not releasing more details of the gun accident, including the make and model of the gun involved. This information is important to consumers and regulators because of the propensity of certain guns to go off during the cleaning cycle. 

Glocks, in particular, are prone to such accidents because the trigger must be pulled as part of the process of taking the pistol apart for cleaning.  A difficult to perceive loaded chamber indicator also contributes to the problem.  Police, among others, have been killed or severely injured as a result.   

The federal government of course, does not regulate gun designs for appropriate safety features. The least we can do is give gun buyers sufficient information to choose safer weapons.

Sources: 

Brian Lopez & Kaley Johnson, “3-year-old Arlington Boy Dies in Apparent Accidental Shooting by Relative, Police Say,”  Fort Worth Star-Telegram (July 21, 2020).

Carlos E. Medina, “Ocala Officer Shot to Death Accidentally During Training,” Ocala.com (April 7, 2015).

Ethan Fry, “Former Norwalk Cop Shot in On-The-Job Accident Sues Gunmaker,” The Hour (September 3, 2019).