Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
In St. Louis, Missouri, a 4-year old found a loaded gun and died after accidentally shooting himself today. Minimal details were reported and there is no word about charges. In Dekalb, Illinois, three men were arrested after they failed to take proper safety precautions while engaging in target practice. One of their rounds passed into …
In Campbell County, Wyoming, a three-year old found a loaded gun “lying around” in a bedroom and accidentally shot himself in the stomach. The boy was taken by air ambulance to a hospital in Casper and is expected to survive. Wyoming has no safe storage or child access prevention law and no arrests were made. …
A six-year old boy in Forest Park, Illinois found his uncle’s loaded gun in a bag in a closet at his home and accidentally shot off his finger. The boy’s grandmother and uncle took him to the hospital and his uncle later returned home to retrieve the finger, according to the report. Emergency staff at …
Eleven-year old Jakari Griffin of Louisville, Kentucky was shot and killed while at home with relatives today. So far, police have declined to describe the specific circumstances of the incident but have issued this statement: “[a]fter conducting all interviews, we believe, at this time, this incident was accidental. We will continue to follow-up to ensure …
Four children, aged 16 and under, were unintentionally shot and killed today. In Escambia County, Florida, one-year old Kacey Bass was shot and killed and her two-year old sister was injured by an eight-year old who was playing with his father’s gun. According to the report, the boy took the gun from his father’s closet …
In Charlotte, North Carolina, a one-year old girl was shot and killed by her 7-year old brother, who also injured himself. According to a neighbor, a friend had come to visit and had left the loaded gun used in the incident in her purse. “He’s seven. He might have thought it was a play gun,” …
The Supreme Court ruled today, in New York Rifle and Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen, that all “law-abiding” Americans have a right to carry a gun outside the home for self-defense. This will have very serious implications and, as its most near-term consequence, will likely eliminate existing gun license procedures in at least five states. Perhaps …
In Chicago, Illinois, Cecilia Thomas, a six-month old girl was shot and killed in her car seat when someone opened fire on her father’s car. According to the report, the shooter is believed to be a woman. Police are investigating. Source: “6-month-old Baby Girl Shot in the Head and Killed,” Chicago Journal (June 24, 2022).
In Muskegon, Michigan, an unidentified 63-year old man was shot dead when a 35-year old accidentally fired a round in a neighboring apartment. The round passed through at least one wall. The 35-year old is in custody and there is an ongoing investigation. Source: Karie Herringa, “Muskegon Man Hit, Killed by Bullet Fired From Adjacent Apartment,” foxonline.com …
A two-year old New Orleans, Louisiana boy found a loaded gun and used it to shoot and kill himself. His parents have been detained for questioning but no charges have been filed. “Everyone has a constitutional right to carry a weapon of course, but we need to do so responsibly,” said New Orleans’ police chief. …
At least three children were injured in gun accidents today. In Wichita, Kansas, a ten-year old boy was hospitalized in critical condition when his father accidentally fired his new gun when he was unloading it to put it in a gun safe. There is an ongoing investigation. Police are looking for a Waterbury, Connecticut man …
After some boys in Rockford, Illinois broke into an abandoned house, a “gun accidentally went off” and a 15-year old was shot in the foot. How the boys got the gun and the circumstances of the accident are not reported. Authorities did not say whether anyone will be charged. Source: John Clark, “Rockford Boy Shot …
Taniya Jones, a Washington, DC sixteen-year old was shot and killed in an incident that police blamed in “negligent weapon handling.” The specific circumstances of Taniya’s death have not been reported. Taniya was the eldest of three sisters and a rising high school junior who dreamed of becoming a pediatrician. “She was a full-of-life, sweet …
Witnesses to a Duluth, Minnesota bar fight and surveillance video confirms “that two men were fighting two other men when a gun fell out of a man’s waistband. When a bystander attempted to grab the gun, it fired and the victim was shot in the foot.” The shooting remains under investigation but police say “there …
A West Memphis, Arkansas two-year old was killed and his mother was injured today in a drive-by shooting. The police do not believe that either was an intended target. “It’s always tragic to her when a little one has been the result of a community violence, and that’s one of the reasons why we’re trying …
A pair of three-year olds were injured as the unintended consequence of gun violence today. Both were shot when rounds were firing into cars in which they were traveling. In Chicago, Illinois, the toddler was shot in the leg and is in good condition. There are no suspects. In Goldsboro, North Carolina, Tyrik Joyner, age …
Eric Joseph Adams of D’Iberville Mississippi called police after his rifle discharged “unexpectedly” while he was putting it away. The round tore through the door of a neighboring apartment and struck and killed Stayvia Leone Hood, age 23. Adams was arrested and charged with manslaughter. “It’s just horrible, just horrible,” the local police chief said. …
Torqavious Johnson, age 18, of Greer, South Carolina, was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter when he picked up a handgun that had fallen on the floor and attempted to return it to 17-year old Dalorian Tyler. According to witnesses, the gun was pointed at Tyler and discharged as Johnson handed it to him. Tyler …
Four people were injured today, including three children, by shots fired indiscriminately into their homes from the street. All were presumably innocent bystanders. In Meridian, Mississippi, an elderly woman and a five-year old child were victims of a drive-by shooting in which rounds passed into their home. Police are investigating. Both are expected to survive. …
At least five children were killed or injured today as unintended consequences of other people’s gun violence. The grim toll: Mariyah Lacy, age 5, of Jackson, Mississippi, was killed when her mother’s ex-boyfriend shot into her mother’s car in an argument over money. Mariyah’s two siblings were uninjured, but her mother was grazed by a …
An 18-year old woman accidentally killed 15-year old Achilles Lopez today while handling a gun inside a Pembroke Pines, Florida home. Police called the shooting unintentional but negligent. Lopez’s sister posted to social media Monday, writing, “[w]ords cannot explain how much I miss you. Fly high you beautiful angel…” Source: Vanessa Medina, “Family Member Handling …
In Denver, Colorado, a 38-year old man unintentionally discharged a gun which fired and injured his 8-year old son in the next room. The boy is at the hospital, but is expected to survive. There is no report of an arrest at this time. In Houston, Texas, a woman accidentally shot and killed her partner …
Brandon Vanatter and Anthony Harris of Cincinnati, Ohio were drunk and playing with Harris’s gun in Harris’s apartment when it went off today, killing Harris. Vannatter has been arrested and charged with reckless homicide. “Anytime you have a firearm and you’re using alcohol, it’s reckless behavior, not accidental behavior,” the prosecutor said. Source: “Prosecutor: Mt. …
Anthony James Madrid, a four-year old Beaumont, Texas boy, found a loaded gun and accidentally shot and killed himself in his home. Several adults and other children were at home at the time of the incident. Police are investigating, but have not yet made an arrest. Local child protection authorities are also involved. “The detectives …
In a complicated scenario, a Houston, Texas teenager, Julio Arnoldo Orsorio Saca, age 18, is charged with murder and aggravated robbery after he accidentally shot his co-conspirator at the outset of a planned robbery. The report of the accident is as follows: Investigators were advised that the deceased male and Osorio Saca were in the …
Cayden Williams, age 10, of Cleveland, Ohio, was shot and killed in his bedroom when his aunt mishandled a gun in an upstairs room. The bullet passed through the ceiling and struck Cayden in the head. Police said the round went through the floor and ricocheted off a mirror before striking Cayden. Cayden’s aunt was …
In Mount Croghan, South Carolina, a 15-year old accidentally shot and killed her 15-year old boyfriend while the two children were playing with a gun. The girl has been arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter. “Looked like they were playing with a gun, handgun, and the gun went off, the safety somehow went off …
Trent Byerly, a Des Allemands, Louisiana 19-year old, was handling a gun inside a car when it accidentally fired. The round struck him in the chest and killed him. Two of his co-passengers were arrested for obstruction of justice. An eight-year old Chicago, Illinois girl was accidentally shot by a 12-year old neighbor in her …
Austin Duhon, a Lubbock, Texas teenager was showing his friend, Christopher Stringer, a shotgun while they were watching television together. Duhon believed the gun was unloaded. Somehow the gun went off and Stringer was shot in the waist. At the time of the report, there was no update on Stringer’s condition. Source: James Clark, “Friday …
In Bountiful, Utah, a police officer accidentally shot himself in the leg during gun training. Police are reviewing their safety protocols for training. And in Lake City, Florida, a maintenance man went to the wrong apartment to fix the lock. He was shot four times from inside the apartment. Police found seven bullet holes in …
Calvin Washington, a Bessemer, Alabama man, aged 30, told police that he had been shot in the leg by an unknown assailant. However, upon investigation, it turned out that he had accidentally shot himself with a stolen gun. The man was arrested and charged with illegal gun possession and giving false information to police. And …