Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
One Person Dead, Three Injured, in Unintentional Shootings Today In a home in Kokomo, Indiana, 37 year-old Henry Clayton was unintentionally shot and killed by Perry A. Reyes, age 31, with a gun that Clayton had been showing him, and that Reyes mistakenly thought was unloaded. When Reyes got ahold of the gun, he pointed it at Clayton and pulled the trigger, fatally wounding Clayton. Reyes …
Two People Injured in Gun Accidents In Akron, Ohio, an eight-year-old boy was hospitalized in stable condition after being accidentally shot by another child. Police determined that the unsecured gun the child was handling when it fired was legally owned by their father. They continue to investigate. And outside a strip mall in National City, …
Four People Wounded in Gun Accidents, Including a 3-year-old Girl In a condominium in Montgomery Village, Maryland, a 3-year-old girl is expected to survive after shooting herself with an unsecured .40 caliber ghost gun. A 15-year-old boy was with other juveniles where the shooting occurred, and has been charged with possessing ammunition and a gun clip. “…[W]e’re …
4-year-old Kills Self with Father’s Glock; 13-year-old Accidentally Shot and Killed While Playing with Both Nerf and Real Gun In a home in Memphis, Tennessee, a 4-year-old found his father’s loaded Glock 10mm handgun and fatally shot himself in the head. The boy’s father, Vincent Gilliams, told police the gun was in his pants pocket …
One Dead, Four Injured in Unintentional Shootings In Rocky Mount, North Carolina, Dcorius Wilkins, 19, died after he was accidentally shot during a car crash. Few details have been reported about the incident, as officials continue to investigate. In Wichita, Kansas, a man and woman, both in their 20s, were shot when the man mishandled …
Woman Killed, and Three Injured in Unintentional Shootings In Memphis, Tennessee, a woman was shot in a vehicle and died. Police say a man and a child were also in the car, and that the child accidentally shot the woman. The woman was a local schoolteacher. The school issued a statement saying they are “deeply …
One Dead, Two Injured in Accidental Shootings; Coach Fired After Dropped Gun Fires During Youth Basketball Game In Shreveport, Louisiana, a teen in the backseat of a car fatally shot the front seat passenger. There were four males in the car. A 16-year-old was in the back handling an AR-style pistol that unintentionally fired, hitting …
Christmas Day Gun Accidents In Nashville, Tennessee, 81-year-old Johnnie Thompson was showing a friend how his Derringer pistol worked. He was fatally struck when he dropped the gun on the floor causing it to unintentionally discharge. Police don’t anticipate any charges being filed. Diego Diaz-Martinez, 31, was a guest at a Christmas family gathering in …
One Person Dead, Five Wounded in Unintentional Shootings A 3-year-old boy is in critical condition after shooting himself in the head in Cincinnati, Ohio. Laronn Ellison 21, left a firearm unsecured enabling the child to gain access it. Both he and Antonia Barrow, 43 were arraigned on charges of child endangering and tampering with evidence. …
8-year-old Killed; Two Teens Injured in Unintentional Shootings In St. David, Arizona, 8-year-old Bradley John Shockley was accidentally shot in the chest with an air rifle while riding on the back of a friends’s four-wheeler. He was pronounced dead at the hospital a short time later. The vehicle went through an area where people were …
Texas Man Shoots Self at Restaurant Outside the Pint and Barrel Restaurant in Palestine, Texas, a 25-year-old patron unintentionally shot himself with a gun he had brought with him. He was found with a gunshot wound to the left thigh and a tourniquet was applied to control the bleeding. The man was sitting outside the …
2-year-old boy is One of Six Victims of Four Gun Accidents A 2-year-old boy in Memphis, Tennessee, was shot in the arm by a 3-year-old relative. He is recovering at the hospital. A woman had asked a male friend to watch the children while she was not at home. Another woman who was inside the …
Three Boys are Wounded in Separate Gun Accidents In Denton, Nebraska, Michael Gardner, 62, fired a blank to get the attention of wedding guests, and unintentionally shot his 12-year-old grandson. Gardner was set to officiate at the wedding when he fired the shot from his Pietta 1860 snub nose revolver. The revolver slipped, sending a …
Two Accidental Shootings Involving Teens Leaves One Dead and One Injured A 16-year-old boy in Bridgeport, Connecticut, was killed when a gun he and 15-year-old girl were handling accidentally discharged. He was shot once in the face and died later at the hospital. No other details have been reported as police continue to investigate. Tallahassee, …
Five Unintentional Shootings, Including Two in Vehicles In Jupiter, Florida, a teenage passenger in a vehicle was handling a gun when it unintentionally discharged, fatally striking the driver. The teenager is facing a charge of negligent manslaughter. Police recovered the firearm as they continue to investigate. Another reported shooting in a vehicle, this time in …
Mishandling Guns and an Unsecured Storage Leave One Dead and Three Wounded In St. Albans, West Virginia, Steven Loftis, 53, accidentally shot himself in the abdomen and died. The discharge allegedly occurred because the firearm was not handled safely and was stored in Loftis’s pants pocket instead of a holster. The case will be reviewed …
Three People Hurt in Gun Accidents, Including Two Children A Fort Bend County, Texas 11-year-old is in the hospital in unknown condition after accidentally shooting himself in the head today. Sheriff’s deputies said they think the shooting happened in the garage of a local home while no one was watching the child. In Quinlan, Texas, …
Six-year-old Shoots Grandmother From Backseat of Car In North Port, Florida, a six-year-old girl found a loaded gun in the backseat of a car and used it to accidentally shoot her grandmother who was driving when the incident occurred. The child took the weapon from a holster that was in a pocket on the back …
Gun Goes Off in a Man’s Pocket and His 12-year-old Son Is Shot In an incident caught on surveillance video at a Chicago, Illinois gas station, a man is shown putting his hand into his pocket and accidentally firing a gun he was carrying there. His son, age 12, was shot, but is expected to …
Two men were injured while attending a wine-tasting event at a restaurant in Miami, Florida. One of the men, a homeland security officer, dropped a gun during the event. The gun fired when it hit the floor and the round passed both through the officer’s leg and the leg of a friend. Neither man suffered …
A Caneyville, Kentucky man picking up a child from elementary school dropped a gun from his pocket while running with his child in the hallway. The 9mm gun fired a round when it hit the floor which struck the man in the leg. He was airlifted to the hospital for treatment. “Although no children were …
At least five people died in unintended shootings in the United States today. In Charlotte, North Carolina, Demario Warren, a four-year-old, apparently found gun in his home and accidentally shot and killed himself. Dayshawn St’Paul Warren, the boy’s father, was arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter. “This isn’t a situation where we are asking the …
A Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 13-year old was shot and injured when a gun discharged while it was in his waistband or pants pocket. No word on how he got the gun. A 31-year old San Antonio, Texas man shot himself in the buttocks when a round he fired in the air apparently returned nearly to earth. …
Terry Moody, Jr. of Charleston, West Virginia died today when a gun fired while in his pants pocket. Police called the shooting accidental. Additional circumstances of the accident have not been reported and it is unclear if the gun was defective. Source: Amanda Barren, “Victim in Sissonville Fatal Shooting Identified,” wowktv.com (August 28, 2022).
We recently posted on the likely impact of the Supreme Court’s decision in New York Rifle and Pistol Ass’n v. Bruen on gun safety. In Bruen, the Supreme Court ruled that all “law-abiding” Americans have a Second Amendment right to carry a gun outside the home for self-defense. Several states quickly responded by considering or …
In North Charleston, South Carolina today, Micah Simmons, a 13-year old, was fatally shot when another child tried to grab a loaded gun from him. Micah died at the hospital. Police say that no charges are likely to be filed and there is no reporting on why Micah had the gun in the first instance. …
A Kouts, Indiana two-year old died today after finding a loaded gun at home and shooting himself. The boy, Wyatt Luczak, died at the hospital. After a month-long investigation, no charges were filed. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the family,” the prosecutor said. In Baldwin, County, Alabama, a four-year old faces surgery after he …
At the state police academy in New Braintree, Massachusetts, a state police trainee shot himself in the leg during a training. The gun discharged while the trainee was holstering it. The injury is not considered life-threatening. In Molino, Florida, a 17-year old with a gun at a party shot himself in the leg while attempting …
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 …
There were gun accidents across the country today resulting in at least six death or injuries: A person taking part in a gun training for Taylor, Michigan auxiliary police officers was shot in the abdomen and taken to the hospital. He was accidentally shot by another person participating in the training. “The volunteers with Taylor’s …
Two St. Louis, Missouri girls, aged 3 and 4, were injured after finding a loaded gun in a parent’s coat pocket and accidentally firing it. One of the girls is in critical condition at the hospital and the other has non-life threatening injuries. There is an ongoing investigation. Source: Kelsee Ward, “2 children, Ages 3 …
A Toledo, Ohio man was charged with child endangerment and tampering with evidence after a toddler found a loaded gun in the man’s pocket and used it to shoot himself in the chest. The man was lying down in bed when the incident occurred. The toddler is in critical condition at the hospital. In Miami, …
In Columbia, South Carolina, a woman with a gun in her pocketbook or in her pocket accidentally shot herself while shopping at a local mall. Other shoppers heard a loud bang and rushed from the premises. The woman’s injuries are not believed to be life-threatening, but her precise condition is unknown. Police are investigating whether …
Tanner Graap of Merrill, Wisconsin, age 27, was arrested and charged with “homicide by negligent handling of a firearm by a felon” after he accidentally shot and killed 28-year old Kayla Frank today. Frank was sitting in Graap’s kitchen when the accident occurred. Details in the criminal complaint include that Graap had used heroin before …
Three children, age 2, age 4, and age 15, were shot and injured in gun accidents today. The two year-old, of Spring Lake, North Carolina, was shot with a semi-automatic pistol as he was sitting in his mother’s car, while she was speaking with someone through the window. Police have declined to say whether he …
A pair of three-year old children found loaded guns in their homes and accidentally shot themselves today. In Birmingham, Alabama, a three-year old found a family member’s loaded gun in his home and shot himself in the leg. He is expected to survive. The report notes that it was the second incident in Jefferson County …
In Columbus, Nebraska, two people were injured when a dog in a pick-up truck discharged a shotgun that had been left unattended in the back seat. The shotgun had previously jammed, according to authorities. Two people were struck as they exited a nearby business. Another vehicle was also damaged. In Oakwood, Georgia, a teenager accidentally …
Every type of gun safety problem was on display in gun accidents that occurred today. All of today’s accidents are tragic, but none more so than the death of a Texas two-year old in Lawrence, Kansas who was shot in the chest while visiting at a local home. Details of the circumstances of the accident …
In Murray, New York, a 50-year old man with an unholstered Ruger semiautomatic pistol in the pocket of his shorts accidentally shot himself in the thigh while repositioning trailers. The accident occurred when the man was putting on his seatbelt. Police took the man to the hospital for treatment. Source: “Orleans County: Man Accidentally Shot …
Two people died today in apparent gun accidents. In Goodlettsville, Tennessee, police found 8-year old Brayden Bowling in his home, suffering from an apparent accidental gunshot wound. No specifics of the incident have been reported, including whether the boy found a loaded gun and shot himself. Brayden later died at the hospital. The principal of …
A man’s gun fell out of his pocket today while exiting a vehicle in a parking lot on Tiny Town Road in Clarksville, Tennessee. It drop-fired and struck him in the leg. He was taken to the hospital in unknown condition. The potential for any gun to be dropped is, of course, foreseeable. Some guns …
In 2017, the Brazilian company Forjas Taurus (“Taurus”)1 recalled nearly a million of its popular pistols2 in the United States as part of the settlement of a class action lawsuit.3 The guns involved have a defect that sometimes causes them to fire even when the gun’s safety was in its “on” position and/or when the …
A 15-year old boy in Pittston, Maine shot himself in the hand with his grandfather’s two -shot Derringer today. Police said the boy went behind a garage wearing a coat that belonged to his grandfather. The boy found the pistol in a pocket and “tried to pull the hammer back, when his thumb slipped off, …
Three guns were accidentally fired today. Three injuries resulted. In Thomasville, Georgia, a man was moving his friend’s AR-15 rifle at the request of his friend’s grandmother, without knowing that the gun was loaded, when it inadvertently fired. A child was injured. There is no report on the victim’s condition. In Knightdale, North Carolina, a …
An unidentified three-year old in Porter, Texas found a gun and shot himself in the chest at his own birthday party. He later died at the local fire station. The boy’s family members were playing cards at the time of the accident. The gun had fallen out of the pocket of someone present at the …
Twice today, a gun accidentally discharged in public, injuring four people. In both cases, a loaded gun was discharged inside a place of business while being carried by its owner inside his pants pocket. In Camden, New York, at the Grape and Grog restaurant, a police deputy accidentally discharged one round from his gun while …
A 16-year old Houston, Texas teenager was killed when a gun accidentally fired while in his pocket. The boy was playing basketball with friends when he went indoors to rest. The gun went off when he slapped his leg. According to a Houston police officer, “[s]omehow that juvenile was shot and he has passed away …
A five-year old Chicago, Illinois boy found a gun in his father’s pants pocket and used it to shoot himself in the hand. He was taken to a hospital where he is expected to recover. His father attempted to discard the gun and was later arrested. Charges are pending. Source: Molly Walsh, “5-Year-Old Boy Accidentally …
An unidentified man died today after accidentally shooting himself while in line at the Supreme Bean coffee shop in Spokane, Washington. No further information about the accident has been reported. An investigation is ongoing. On the other side of the country, in Cedartown, Georgia, at Zorba’s restaurant, a man accidentally shot himself in the parking …
At the Fashion Square Mall in Saginaw Township, Michigan, a 29-year old man accidentally shot himself in the leg. According to police, the man was shopping at Victoria’s Secret. When he went to put his wallet in his back pocket, his pistol discharged. Source: Michael Percha, “Accidental Shooting at Fashion Square Mall Injures One” NewsRadio …