Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
Man Accidentally Shot and Killed By Acquaintance David Kueker, age 41, unintentionally shot and killed an acquaintance in Pensacola, Florida. Kueker and the victim thought someone had threatened them and they were “standing watch” outside Kueker sister’s house. Kueker got into a car’s backseat and fell asleep. According to a statement from the sheriff’s office …
Two Unintentional Shootings Result in Two Deaths In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 15-year-old Kenneth Burrell was unintentionally shot and killed by another 15-year-old. Several juveniles were playing with a handgun when it fired. The 15-year-old suspect was charged with negligent homicide and illegal use of weapons. Police continue to investigate. And in a state park in …
13-year-old Boy Paralyzed After Unintentional Shooting During Sleepover In Port Orange, Florida, 13-year-old Nathaniel Green was airlifted to the hospital in critical condition after he was accidentally shot while sleeping over at a friend’s house. The bullet went through his throat and spinal cord, and he remains in an induced coma paralyzed from the waist …
Five-year-old Girl Unintentionally Shot by Deputy During Carjacking At a gas station in Atlanta, Georgia, five-year-old Skylar Adams was asleep in the back seat of her mother’s car, when a deputy fired at the vehicle to prevent 25-year-old Roshauny Mike Palmer from carjacking the car and fleeing. Skylar was injured and is recovering at the …
Three Unintended Shootings, One By a Three-year-old Child A three-year-old Petersburg, Virginia child found a semi-automatic pistol at home and shot himself in the arm. “A three-year-old shouldn’t have access to a gun,” one neighbor said. According to the report, a friend of the family left the gun on a table with “some articles” on …
Sleeping Child Injured in Drive-by Shooting A child sleeping in their bed in Flint, Michigan, was seriously injured during a drive-by shooting. The child was taken to the hospital and is listed in stable condition. Officials are asking the public for information about the incident, and currently have no suspects in custody. Source: Sara Powers, “Child …
Two Children Killed in Gun Accidents A 5-year-old killed himself while playing with a loaded gun he found inside a home in Cumberland, Maryland. The child’s father, 31-year-old Warin Torae Foster, was watching the boy at the time, and has been charged with manslaughter, reckless endangerment and allowing firearm access to a minor. Police are …
Two Children Killed in Gun Accidents In Milwaukee, Wisconsin, 10-year-old Isdennyeliz Ortiz, was shot and killed while she slept in her bed. She lived with her immediate family on the second floor of a tri-level home occupied by her extended family. A bullet from a gun discharged on the third floor came through Isdennyeliz’s ceiling …
4-year-old Injured After Finding Loaded Gun In a home in Glendale, Arizona, a 4-year-old boy was critically injured after he shot himself in the chest with a loaded, unsecured gun. He is now in stable condition, and is expected to recover. His father, Kevin Rhymes, 44, and his father’s girlfriend, Laquasha Sebastian, 31, have both …
Two Hunters are Killed, and Two Boys are Wounded in Gun Accidents Seth Egelhoff, 26, was shot and killed while hunting waterfowl in Panora, Iowa. A member of Egelhoff’s hunting party accidentally shot him in the face. He died on the way to the hospital and authorities are investigating. Another hunting accident resulting in a …
Woman Dies in Unintentional Shooting While in Bed In Meridian, Mississippi, an unidentified woman died from a gunshot wound to her femur today. According to the report, the gun off accidentally in the bed where the woman was sleeping. Minimal additional details were reported. Sources: Morgan Howard, “Meridian Police Investigating After Woman Killed When Gun …
Five-year-old Boy Kills Himself with Unsecured Gun and Two Law Enforcement Officers Unintentionally Shoot Themselves A five-year-old boy found an unsecured gun and unintentionally shot and killed himself in Gary, Indiana. A 32-year-old man was to check in on a 17-year-old girl and the boy while adults were away. He arrived at the home after …
One Dead, Three Injured in Four Unintentional Shootings Kelsey Moore died from an accidental shooting in a vehicle in Hopkinsville, Kentucky. Few details have been reported but the alleged shooter is in custody as the investigation continues. A two-year-old was napping in bed with his mother in Burlington, North Carolina. While she was sleeping, he …
Eight-year-old Child is Shot and Killed with Unsecured Gun, and Four Other People are Hurt in Separate Unintentional Shootings A group of children found a loaded, unsecured gun in a home in Detroit, Michigan. It’s unclear what exactly happened once it was found, but the gun went off killing an eight-year-old. An adult has been …
Boy Unintentionally Shot with a Ghost Gun and Three Other Children Wounded by Stray Bullets In Gurnee, Illinois, a 15-year-old boy is in the hospital in critical condition after being accidentally shot in the abdomen. He was in the basement with two 16-year-old friends, when one produced and discharged a semi-automatic ghost gun, unintentionally striking …
Four Children and Two Adults Wounded by Stray Gunfire In Manhattan, New York, a 4-year-old child and a 35-year-old man are in stable condition after being hit by stray gunfire outside a deli. Two men in a car pulled up to the shop and opened fire, missing their intended male target, and hitting the child …
North Carolina Teen Unintentionally Shot and Killed 14-year-old Kiasia Iyonna Birchett was accidentally shot and killed by a 16-year-old relative today in High Point, North Carolina. “I moved from Jersey to give her a better life and to get her away from the violence, the guns, give her a better life, I did everything, and …
11-year-old Boy Finds Father’s Loaded Gun In Memphis, Tennessee, an 11-year-old boy found his father’s loaded handgun on top of a fish tank in his home and unintentionally shot himself. At the hospital, the boy’s mother told police that her son was struck by a stray bullet. But when police spoke with the victim’s father, …
Young Boys Find Loaded Assault Rifle at Home and Both are Injured It took two days for Desiree Felder, a 26-year-old Baton Rouge, Louisiana mom, to acknowledge a gun accident that injured her son and her nephew. One of the children is three and the other is six. Police were called to a hospital Monday …
School Responds After Seven-year-old Cleveland Boy Finds a Gun and Shoots and Kills Himself Demetrius Dunlap of Cleveland, Ohio, age 7, found a gun in his home and accidentally shot and killed himself. “It looks like the juvenile was sitting on the couch. The gun is sitting on the couch. Somebody had dropped the mag …
Two More Teenagers Killed in Gun Accidents For the second day in a row, two teenagers died in preventable gun accidents. In New Orleans, Louisiana, 15-year-old Tyler Ellis was accidentally shot in his home by another 15-year-old. Less than three weeks ago, Kennedi Belton, a classmate of Ellis’s, was also killed in a preventable gun …
A Deadly Accident with a Ghost Gun Andre Skinner of New Orleans, Louisiana, was charged with negligent homicide after he told police that he was trying to take apart a ghost gun “to become more familiar with it.” He first removed the magazine but wasn’t aware that there was a round still in the chamber. …
Two Children Shot as Innocent Bystanders An eight-year-old and a three-year-old were victims of other people’s gun violence today. The eight-year-old, Aacuria Hinton of Greensboro, North Carolina, was shot while sleeping in her bunk bed. The bullet was fired from outside for reasons that police are investigating. Her injuries are considered life-threatening, and she is …
Dog Shoots Hunter by Stepping on Gun In Sumner County, Kansas, a hunter died from his injuries in a gun accident that was reportedly caused by a dog stepping on a gun. The sheriff’s office determined that “the man was sitting in the front passenger seat of the pickup when a dog stepped on the …
In Goldsboro, North Carolina, a seven-year-old child was shot by an eight-year-old relative, but is expected to recover. There has been no report about how the children got the gun. Michael Howard-Owens of Chicago, Illinois, was in bed with his girlfriend and her three-year old son, when his gun, which was in his waistband, accidentally …
In Lakeland, Florida, a 12-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed himself after finding a gun at a friend’s house during a sleepover. The boy and his 13-year-old friend were in the garage and found a gun in one of the family’s vehicles. According to the report, there were no adults at home at this time …
In Decatur, Georgia, Lashunda Heath-Ellison was critically injured early Wednesday morning when she was shot in the head by a stray bullet while she was at home asleep. Her husband, Mac Ellison, said he woke up shortly after midnight to the sound of his wife’s ragged breathing. When Ellison turned his wife over, he saw …
On Memorial Day, two women were shot inside their homes as a result of gun violence occurring outside. In Queens, New York, 72-year old Margaret Henry, a grandmother and a retired librarian, was struck in the arm by a bullet fired outside. She was in bed watching television at the time of the incident, having …
Among ten shootings reported in 24 hours in Portland, Oregon, there were at least two that involved innocent bystanders. In one, the victim was in bed asleep when she was struck by a round fired in an altercation outside. The extent of the woman’s injuries was not reported. In the other, a woman getting out of a …
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, Fong Vang, age 40, was charged with manslaughter after he accidentally shot and killed his younger brother Dan. Fong was staying with his siblings and his mother temporarily and was sleeping on the floor. When he heard a loud noise in the middle of the night, he fired multiple rounds through the …
Janiyah Jenkins, an Atlanta, Georgia four-year old, found her uncle’s loaded and unsecured gun in her home and shot herself in the leg. The round passed into her intestines and Janiyah died at the hospital. Janiyah’s uncle, LeVante Cummings, age 26, was arrested and charged with second degree murder and cruelty to a child. He …
Two people, including a one-year old baby, were injured in gun accidents after rounds passed through apartment walls. A one-year old Columbus, Ohio girl was struck by a bullet while she was sleeping between her parents. She was struck in the backside and is in stable condition at the hospital. The round, which was fired …
A three-year old Nashville, Tennessee child took his mother’s loaded gun from her purse while she was sleeping and shot himself in the abdomen. The child was airlifted to the hospital for emergency surgery. No charges have been filed. Source: Lucas Wright, “3-year-old Shoots Self with Mother’s Gun, Metro Police Say,” wkrn.com (March 8, 2022).
In Mobile, Alabama, Jacoby Smoots was charged with first degree assault after shooting his teenage brother in the shoulder in what police called “a prank gone wrong.” According to the report, Smoots found his brother asleep in a car that he was supposed to be repairing. He pointed his gun at his brother’s chest in …
A 48-year old woman was shot while sleeping on a couch in a Nashville, Tennessee apartment near Music Row. Jonerica Johnson, age 28, had fired her gun in the air after being told to leave a bar across the street. Johnson was taken into custody and charged with reckless endangerment, resisting arrest, disorderly contact, public …
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 …
Children were shot as innocent bystanders in three separate incidents today. In Kenner, Louisiana, a 10-year old was shot while he was sleeping. He is in stable condition at the hospital. Police are investigating the connection between today’s incident and an incident in July, in which a 15-year old was killed in the same home. …
In Memphis, Tennessee, a man accidentally shot himself at a local Express Inn hotel. He was taken to Regional One Hospital in critical condition. Police did not say whether he would face charges. In Lauderhill, Florida, shooting broke out on the street. A man several houses down from where the shooting occurred was grazed by …
The Problem of Relying on a Gun Seller as an “Expert” on Gun Safety According to the original report, police concluded that an Independence, Missouri eight-year old found a gun in his family’s home and shot himself. He was transported to the hospital where he later died. “We are just trying to put all the …
Garrick Baker,an intoxicated Westfield, Indiana man shot and killed his stepson, age 18, who was sleeping on a couch at the time of the incident. According to the report, the man was handling a gun in his living room while “presumed to be intoxicated.” It went off. Baker was arrested and charged with criminal recklessness. …
Austin Salyer, a Texas State University student, was shot and killed while sleeping when a gun was negligently discharged in a neighboring apartment. Police in San Marcos, Texas have identified and interviewed the shooter, but have not released the shooter’s name pending further investigation. They have offered their deepest condolences to Salyer’s family. Source: Maeve …
A St. Louis, Missouri three-year old asleep in her bed was shot in the head and rushed to the hospital in critical condition today. The shots were fired outside. No other details were reported. Source: Jason Maxwell, “Three-year-old Shot While Sleeping; Shot Fired Outside Home,” Fox 2 Now (September 6, 2021).
In San Antonio, Texas, a woman was shot in the head when a bullet passed through a wall from the next apartment. Her neighbor claimed to be sleeping with a gun nearby that fired when he moved in his sleep. The woman’s wound is not considered life-threatening. There is no word yet about whether the …
In Wichita, Kansas, a three-year old found a gun and shot herself and her father while he was sleeping. The girl was struck in the hand and her father was struck in the leg. Both were treated at the hospital. Police are investigating how the firearm was stored. During the investigation, three other children have …
A 14-year old Jacksonville, Florida boy was arrested and charged with negligence after a 6-year old found a gun in a bedroom of his home and accidentally killed himself. Police said the 14-year-old is accused of improperly storing the gun because he had had possession of the weapon earlier that day. The child, 6-year old …
Details are sketchy about a gun accident that left a person dead in Waterloo, Iowa today. No information about the circumstances of the accident or the age or identity of the victim have been released. The report of the shooting has only the following odd details: “The accidental shooting happened just days after the home …
In Union, Missouri, a four-year old founded a loaded gun under the couch where his father was sleeping. The boy shot and killed himself. According to the local sheriff, the boy’s father, Scott E. Hilton, Jr., was restricted from having a gun in the home. Hilton was arrested and charged with second degree murder during …
Elijah Farral, a 20-year old Columbus, Georgia man and two friends were playing with a loaded handgun when he accidentally pulled the trigger according to police testimony. He accidentally shot and killed Sara Holtrop, age 18, who was sleeping nearby on a couch. Farral has been charged with involuntary manslaughter. “Sara was an extremely sweet …
Two children found guns and injured other children today, once again in Texas and Ohio. In Houston, Texas, a boy described as 6- or 7-years old, found a loaded gun and shot his five-year old sister in the leg. She was hospitalized with non-life threatening injuries. Several family members were home at the time of …
Across the country, people young and old were injured or killed by celebratory gunfire on New Year’s morning. The incidents are too numerous to fully describe. Returning to Texas, the site of one of last year’s worst celebratory gunfire tragedies, at least four people, including a sleeping eight-year old Houston boy, were struck by celebratory …
Three young girls were struck by bullets and injured in unrelated incidents today. Two children were shot in their homes. A third was in a car when she was struck. In each case, it is clear the child was not the intended target of gun violence. No suspects are in custody. In the first incident, …
Continuing a spate of recent incidents in which people have been shot by relatives who mistakenly believed that they were defending their homes, a Port Salerno, Florida man shot and killed his pregnant wife. “I just shot my wife. My life is over,” the unidentified man is quoted as saying. He told investigators that he …
For the second time this week, a woman was mistaken for an intruder in the middle of the night and shot by her partner. In an incident that bears a startling similarity to one reported in Utah on Tuesday of this week, a man was woken by noise in his home and grabbed a loaded …
At a virtual arraignment in New York City on Thursday, prosecutors described a gun accident in a Bronx apartment and its consequences: “The defendant carelessly assumed the firearm was unloaded and discharged the firearm, causing a bullet to strike a sleeping child in the abdomen, ripping through her torso and exiting her body through her …
13-year old DeAdrian Walker of San Antonio, Texas died when a handgun he was playing with accidentally fired and hit him in the chest. The gun may have been stolen. Several other teenagers who were with DeAdrian at at the time of the gun accident are cooperating with an ongoing investigation. In Cincinnati, Ohio, 16-year …
A 14-year-old Columbus, Ohio boy shot himself in the hand in a gun accident today. He later told police he was handling “his handgun” when he accidentally shot himself. The boy’s mother was inside the house sleeping when the incident took place. In Ohio, a person must be over 21 to purchase a handgun, but …
There were two gun accidents involving AR-15 style rifles today, each illustrating a combat-designed purpose of the weapon. In the first incident, a Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania man was sleeping in a chair in a wooded area by a pond when he was accidentally shot with a small caliber round fired by one of two men …
A 15-year old in Houston, Texas turned himself in to police after accidentally shooting his 5-year old sister in the stomach. The accident occurred while his parents were asleep. The boy panicked and ran from the home when his parents woke up to the sound of the gunshot. The 5-year old was rushed to a …
A family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is mourning the death of three-year old Chassity Clancy who was shot to death in a gun accident in her home. According to reports, 51-year old Marlin Pritchard was babysitting and fell asleep next to Chassity with a loaded pistol grip shotgun under his pillow when the gun went off. …
In San Antonio, Texas, police are investigating after 7-year old Jeffrey Taylor found a gun in his home this morning and shot himself while his family was sleeping. The child was pronounced dead when authorities arrived. The adults in the family are weapons trained and did not know why the gun was unsecured. Source: Gerald …