Four People Injured by Celebratory Gunfire

Law enforcement agencies warn the public about the extreme danger and illegality of celebratory gunfire, but the problem persists, and at least four people were injured today by guns fired into the air in celebration of the Fourth of July.

In Canton, Ohio, 46-year-old Summer Christian, is recovering after she was injured by celebratory gunfire near her home. A stray bullet went through the wall of Christian’s home, striking her in the back while she slept. Dairus Leishman, age 24, was arrested and faces charges including assault and discharging a weapon into a home. “The idea that firing weapons randomly into the air has no consequences, or knowing and ignoring those consequences, is outrageous. ‘Celebratory gunfire’ is dangerous and illegal,” said the police chief.

Lakesha Davis, was critically injured after being hit by a stray bullet from celebratory gunfire in her home in Lithonia, Georgia. Davis is an employee of the county district attorney’s office. Two people have been arrested in connection with the shooting; Steven Joseph, age 34 was charged with aggravated assault and criminal damage, and Odane Lynch, age 42, was charged with reckless conduct and discharging a firearm near a public highway or street.

An eight-year-old girl was waiting with her family for fireworks to start, when she was hit in the back by “falling celebratory gunfire” in downtown Nashville, Tennessee. She is expected to recover. No suspect has been identified, but officers are investigating.

And a family was celebrating in the backyard of a home in Channelview, Texas, when a nine-year-old child was struck in the arm by a bullet, that investigators believe came from celebratory gunfire. The child was taken to the hospital and is expected to be OK.

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