THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2022

An Anderson County, South Carolina 9-year old was shot today when his mother’s gun fell out of her purse, struck the floor and discharged. His injuries are not considered life-threatening.

The sheriff’s office is investigating.

Source:

Anne Newman, “Child Shot at Anderson County Home, Deputies Say,” wyff4.com (February 10, 2022).

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GUNS AND ALCOHOL

As a society, we spend substantial resources trying to prevent accidents caused by drunken drivers. Efforts include ubiquitous public service announcements, enhanced criminal and civil penalties, and legal remedies creating potential liability for those selling or otherwise providing alcohol to inebriated people. Many of these efforts are designed to deter drunken driving by the in terrorem effect of potential criminal sanctions, civil liability or loss of license.

Comparatively little attention is paid to preventing accidents caused by the toxic mix of alcohol and guns. Two recent news stories involving drunken accidents illustrate these risks.

In Mauston, Wisconsin, police sergeant Michael Sturek shot another person in the groin after a night of drinking. Although Sturek is a firearms instructor, he told investigators that he does not know how the gun went off. During the interview, Sturek said that he did not have “his booger picker on the bang switch.”

According to the report, Sturek and the victim had about a dozen beers during the evening and early morning of August 25^th and 26^th. Sturek was showing his Walters P22 pistol to the victim in his backyard when it went off. The bullet passed through the victim’s groin and lodged in his thigh.

Sturek is charged with “felony second-degree recklessly endangering safety, misdemeanor endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon and misdemeanor possession of a firearm while intoxicated.” The charges carry a potential ten year sentence.

In the second incident, on October 4, Angela Fallan of Missoula, Montana, shot a companion in the head at her apartment after a day of vodka drinking. Fallan acknowledged that she had invited the man to her home to help with her three children, but apparently she had asked him to leave several times over the course of the day. Although he had indeed departed several times, eventually he refused to leave.

According to a report, Fallan provided inconsistent accounts of what then happened. “[W]hen confronted with the inconsistencies, [she] said ‘I did drink quite a bit today.’ Fallan claimed she “essentially” grabbed the gun from the male and “clicked” the trigger as she tried to take the gun away and did not realize it was loaded. Fallan said she went into ‘absolute shock” after the male was shot and she saw blood coming out of his head.’

Fallan also asserted that she did not know how to load the gun or how to turn the safety off. She said she had never shot the gun except for “today on accident.” However, Fallan eventually admitted “I pulled the trigger on purpose, but I didn’t realize it was a loaded f*****g gun.”

Three children under the age of six were in the apartment at the time of the incident. Fallan has been charged with attempted homicide.

According to a 2015 literature review, a “large group of studies showed that over one third of firearm violence decedents had acutely consumed alcohol and over one fourth had heavily consumed alcohol prior to their deaths. Another large group of studies showed that alcohol was significantly associated with firearm use as a suicide means.”

Despite these types of recorded incidents and the clarity of the reported data, there is no comprehensive effort to prevent gun violence, accidents and suicides associated with possession and use of guns while drinking.

Sources:

Christopher Jardine, “Mauston Police Officer Charged with Felony after Allegedly Shooting Another in Groin While Drunk,” Juneau County Star-Times (October 13, 2020).

Nick Chrestenson, “Woman Allegedly Shot Man in the Head, Said She Didn’t Know the Gun was Loaded,” NewsTalkKGVO.com (October 6, 2020).

Charles C. Branas, SeungHoon Han, and Douglas J. Wiebe, “Alcohol Use and Firearm Violence” 38 Epidemiological Reviews 32 (January 24, 2016).

Shattered – The Gun Accident Journal

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