Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
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 …
Three reports of gun accidents today, two of them reported only via Tweets: A Wichita, Kansas two-year-old found a loaded gun in his home and shot his mother in the foot while she was in bed. Both the boy’s mom and her boyfriend were arrested on child endangerment charges. A 49-year-old Riva, Maryland man shot …
Police in Edina, Minnesota found a trail of blood at the Southdale Mall. The report indicates that police have concluded that someone at the mall accidentally fired a round into the floor that ricocheted and struck the shooter in the leg. They have yet to identify the shooter and the mall was fully reopened after …
A young child in Phoenix, Arizona was taken to the hospital in critical condition after shooting themselves with a gun they found in their home. In Little Rock, Arkansas, a person on the street accidentally shot themselves in the leg, but their injuries are not considered life-threatening. A Grand Rapids, Michigan man shot his gun …
January 1, 2023 does not bode well for gun safety in the New Year because there were too many gun accidents to meaningfully consider, including many that appear to have resulted from celebratory gunfire. Among the reported incidents: In Van Buren County, Michigan, 62-year-old Christopher Toppenberg was charged with murder Wednesday in connection with the …
A child in Springfield, Missouri died today in an unintentional shooting, but few details have been reported, including the circumstances of the accident. Not even the child’s age is available. A neighbor said, ”[m]y kids play with their kids, and I’m just glad my kids weren’t over there because an accident could happen to anybody.” …
In Chicago, Illinois, a ten-year-old girl found a gun in her home and accidentally shot herself in the hand. She is in good condition at the hospital and no arrests have been made. In West Valley City, Utah, a man shot himself in the leg while cleaning his gun. He is in stable condition at …
A Bluefield, West Virginia 2-year-old and two siblings, age 4 and 6, were playing in a bedroom of their home when the 2-year-old found a loaded .40 caliber pistol and shot himself in the leg. “The hollow-point bullet went through his thigh,” according to a police spokesperson. Although the child lost “a substantial amount of …
A Zebulon, North Carolina police officer shot himself Monday night during an attempt to arrest a suspect in Wake County. Zebulon Police say that Officer Colby James responded to a suspicious car at Zebulon Community Park. The suspect, 51-year-old Deserie Byrum, was subject to an outstanding county warrant. When James tried to arrest her, Byrum …
In Indianapolis, Indiana, a man was cleaning a gun when it accidentally discharged striking a woman in the foot. A 9 mm round was found beneath a window next to a bed, according to the report. In Oak Hill, West Virginia, a man was playing with a gun when it discharged. He struck himself in …
One of the police officers conducting a “welfare check” on a Hobart, Wisconsin resident, accidentally shot himself in the hip while attempting to subdue the man. The incident occurred alongside a highway and closed down all eastbound lanes. The man had pulled over on the side of the road where the incident occurred. The officer’s …
A Memphis, Tennessee school was placed on lockdown after a 15-year-old accidentally discharged a weapon that he had brought to school. According to the report, another student went to the school nurse with a gunshot wound to his leg. The 15-year-old was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment. Apparently, the incident did not result in …
In Rockford, Illinois, a six-year-old child found an unattended loaded gun and fired it, striking a 28-year-old woman. The woman was taken to the hospital and is in stable condition. Khadijah Morris, 28, and Ashley Laures, 29, were charged with endangering the life and health of a child. Recently, on November 20, another Rockford six-year-old …
A three-year-old Stark County, Ohio boy shot and injured his mother today. She was shot in the leg and is expected to survive, but no other details have been reported, including how the boy accessed the gun. “This is an example as to why it is critical that firearms are properly stored inside the home,” …
William Harston, a Hendersonville, Kentucky man is dead after he accidentally shot himself in the chest outside a local pawn shop. According to the report, he was loading a gun in his truck when it went off. Also today, a Chicago, Illinois man shot a three-year-old boy in the shin while attempting to holster a …
When five Kansas children went hunting without supervision, one of them, Cash Stein, 15, was accidentally shot in the head. He was flown to a hospital where he underwent surgery to remove pellet fragments. Doctors are keeping him sedated to control swelling. The family said Cash and his friends have hunted together for years, and …
In Jackson, Mississippi, a game of Russian Roulette resulted in the death of 12-year-old Markell Noah. He had been originally thought missing before authorities found his body in an abandoned home. Two minors face murder charges, while an adult is facing an accessory to murder charge, authorities said. The investigation is ongoing. A newly enacted …
On Thanksgiving Day, a two-year-old and a 19-year-old were unintentionally shot and injured. A Peoria, Illinois two-year-old has serious, but non-life-threatening injuries. The news report of the incident implies that he found a loaded gun in his home on Thanksgiving evening and used it to shoot himself. Jordan Parker, a 24-year-old, was arrested and charged …
Four people accidentally shot themselves with their own guns today. All are expected to survive. The incidents happened at a Pocatello, Idaho mall, in the bathroom of a Nashville, North Carolina Domino’s pizza store, in a car traveling on I-94 near Detroit, Michigan, and in a remote conservation area near Tioga, New York, where a …
An Elkhart, Indiana five-year-old with access to a loaded gun accidentally shot himself in the arm today. His injuries are not considered life-threatening. A police investigation is ongoing. And in Beatrice, Nebraska, a woman was shot by a friend when he was “demonstrating how to stop a hammer from falling in case someone pointed a …
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 …
In Kent County, Michigan, a 71-year-old part-time deputy shot himself in the hand during a firearms training session at the sheriff’s office gun range. His injuries are not considered life threatening and the sheriff’s office says, “there is no threat to the public.” Source: “Deputy Accidentally Shoots Own Hand During Training at Kent Co. …
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 …
In Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, a 38-year-old man visiting a corn maze with his family accidentally shot himself in the leg. According to police, the man got a piece of corn in his boot. His gun fired when he bent over to remove the corn. Police say the gun did not have a safety or a …
Two women, aged 64 and 38, were injured when a 75-year-old man accidentally fired a shotgun round at a Texas City, Texas shooting range. According to the report, the man was attempting to clear a gun, when he accidentally fired a round that struck a concrete floor. Shotgun pellets ricocheted and struck the two women. …
In Bismarck, North Dakota, 19-year-old Timothy Duran was arrested and charged with reckless endangerment after shooting a 23-year old friend. Both the victim, whose condition has not been released, and Duran told police that the shooting was an accident. They were playing with guns when one of them discharged. In Bibb County, Georgia, a 16-year-old …
Derrick Curtis, an alderman in Southwest Chicago, Illinois, shot himself in the wrist today while cleaning a gun. He is in good condition at the hospital. And in Salem Township, Minnesota, an unidentified 70-year-old man shot himself in the leg, also while cleaning a gun. According to the report, a police deputy applied a tourniquet, …
A recruit participating in a Michigan police academy handgun training was injured today. During the training, the recruit was reportedly returning his gun to its holster when he fired a round, striking himself in the leg. He is in good condition after treatment. Source: Denyse Shannon, “Police Academy Cadet Injured in Shooting,” Newsradio WSGW (October …
In Roanoke, Virginia, a “juvenile” was killed in a gun accident along a local street. Although circumstances of the accident have not been released, those involved are cooperating with the ongoing investigation. An Arkansas City, Kansas man shot himself in the leg while attempting to clean his 9 millimeter pistol. Such accidents often occur because …
At least three accidental shootings were reported today. In Lubbock, Texas, near Texas Tech University, a man suffered “moderate injuries” when he shot himself while attempting to unholster a gun. A man in a Bridge City Texas RV park was struck in the leg random gunfire that came from nearby. He is in stable condition …
Indianapolis, Indiana is currently undergoing a wave of gun violence. Ten people have been shot and killed in just the first six days of October. The crisis is exacerbated, as usual, by unintended gun violence. A recent Indianapolis news report about four gun violence incidents in less than 8 hours suggests that at least three …
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 …
Two gun accidents involving animals occurred today. In West Palm Beach, Florida a police officer attempting to fire at an attacking pit bull accidentally shot and injured a fellow officer. Apparently, the round fired passed through the dog and into the officer that was being attacked. And in Kenyon, Minnesota, officers reported that a drunk …
Lindell Mays of New Orleans, Louisiana was arrested today after a four-year old boy was shot in the parking lot of a local store. Mays was charged by New Orleans police with mishandling a firearm “with respect to minors.” It is unclear if the boy got ahold of the gun in a car when he …
In Chantilly, Virginia, a man accidentally shot himself in the foot with his own gun Friday at a gun show. According to witnesses, the magazine had been removed from the firearm, but there was still a round in its chamber. The man apparently was unaware that the gun was still loaded. Source: “Man Accidentally Shoots …
Police were called today when a Storm Lake, Iowa man accidentally shot himself inside an apartment. Police found that the man had shot himself in the hand and transported him to the hospital for treatment. No charges were filed. Source: “One Person Injured In Storm Lake Shooting Incident,” kicdam.com (September 27, 2022).
In South Lake Tahoe, California, 37-year old Julio Rojas Cruz died of a bullet wound to the head. According to police, Rojas’s death resulted from negligent firing of a 9 mm handgun. No further information is available. In Wisconsin, two men accidentally shot themselves, one in Fond du Lac, the other in Milwaukee. Both are …
In Kingsport, Tennessee, a man “negligently” shot himself in the hand, and then told police that someone else had fired the shot before fleeing the scene. The bullet, after passing though the man’s hand, also struck and injured a second individual. The incident prompted several school lockdowns as well as a pointless police investigation to …
In Detroit, Michigan, a police officer firing at a dog missed the dog but struck his partner in the leg. The injured officer was taken to the hospital where he is in stable condition. Source: “Detroit Police Officer Hurt in Accidental Shooting by Partner,” Fox 7 (September 18, 2022).
According to the Escambia County, Florida Sheriff’s Office, a local gun club patron fired the wrong type of ammunition for his weapon and it ricocheted back off a steel target. The man was struck in the arm, but his injuries are not considered life-threatening. According to the gun club “[t]he injury sustained by a club …
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. …
An Athens, Georgia woman was seriously injured when she was unintentionally shot while lying on a couch in her apartment. According to police, multiple rounds were fired in a domestic violence incident in a neighboring unit. One of the rounds apparently passed through an apartment wall and struck the woman in the back. A Vermont …
Police are investigating an incident in which an off-duty Harris County, Texas sheriff’s deputy accidentally shot himself in the chest in his home. No details of the incident have been reported and the deputy’s name has not been released. Source: “Off-duty HCSO Deputy Accidentally Shoots Himself in the Chest at Magnolia Home, Officials Say,” khou.com …
In Columbus, Ohio, a man who was attempting to shoot at his former girlfriend’s car while she was driving had the bullet ricochet and strike him in the leg. Although the man told police that the woman had shot at him from her car, police investigation revealed that the round he fired is the one …
A Philadephia, Pennsylvania FBI agent suffered minor injuries when his gun discharged on the loading dock of the local federal building. In the statement, the FBI said, “The FBI takes all shooting incidents involving our agents or tasks force members seriously. In accordance with Bureau police, the shooting incident is under investigation by an FBI …
In an episode apparently involving celebratory gunfire during fireworks, an 18-year old was struck by a falling round in a Seattle, Washington park. The teen’s injuries were not considered life-threatening. A Brownsville, Texas police officer shot himself in the foot during a “SWAT competition”. The competition involved a hostage rescue, sniper spotter and a team …
In Niles, Michigan, Brittany Young, age 35, died today when a gun she was bringing into a local home accidentally fired. No other details have been reported. And in Ovett, Mississippi, Adam Doggett, age 41, is in intensive care after a friend accidentally discharged a 9 mm gun in his backyard. According to the report, …
In Charlotte, North Carolina, man “negligently discharged” his weapon inside his vehicle outside a local shooting range. He was transported to a hospital for treatment. In Mashpee, Massachusetts, a man negligently shot himself in the hand and was flown to a Rhode Island hospital for treatment. And in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, a man who was …
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 …
In Union County, Tennessee, a “small child” found a handgun in their parent’s car and used it to shoot one of their parents. The injured parent was taken to the hospital for treatment. No other details were reported. Source: “Union Co. Deputies: Parent Hospitalized After Small Child Accidentally Shot Them,” wbir.com (July 16, 2022).
In Madison, Tennessee, a man accidentally shot his brother in the face while cleaning his gun. The injured man is in critical condition at the hospital. No charges are expected. There is no report on whether the gun involved in the incident had a loaded chamber indicator, a magazine safety disconnect, or was a Glock, …
For the second time in a week, police in Graham, North Carolina report that a young man was involved in an accidental shooting. In the latest incident, little has been reported other than that a 22-year old man was found dead by police. Their investigation, which is ongoing, suggests that the man suffered an accidental …
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 …
At least nine people appear to have been struck by random rounds that were fired in celebration of the Fourth of July. The consequences of celebratory gunfire continue to be felt most keenly by people other than those whose idea of a celebration is to use their guns in an unsafe way. In Chicago, Illinois, …
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 …
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 …
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. …
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 …
As gun violence continues to plague Cleveland, Ohio, 87-year old Frances Black was shot in the head and killed by her 54-year old daughter in a shooting that appears to have been accidental. Few details have been reported, but police interviewed Ms. Black’s daughter without arresting her. They appear to be treating the shooting as …
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 Huntington, West Virginia, Sheila Eanes, age 63, was shot and killed inside her home by a neighbor who fired several rounds at a vehicle passing by in the street. One of the rounds passed into Eanes’ home and struck her in the head. The shooter, Calvin Young, age 34, was arrested and charged with …
In what West Valley, Utah police are calling an accidental shooting, an unidentified 14-year old boy shot himself on Saturday. He died at the hospital the next day. Police are investigating various questions, including how the boy got a gun. A man also shot himself in the parking lot at an Orlando, Florida gun show …
In Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 23-year old Kendrick Wilson was shot to death by 26-year old Deangelo Coleman while Coleman was allegedly playing with a gun. Coleman was arrested and charged with negligent homicide. The shooting was reportedly just one of three in Baton Rouge today. A Lexington, Kentucky firefighter who was chasing a “squatter who …
A six-year old Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania apparently found a gun is his home and accidentally shot himself in the head. He is hospitalized in critical condition. And in separate incidents, two Pullman, Washington men accidentally shot themselves and had to be airlifted to the hospital in Spokane. One of the men shot himself in the leg …
A man claiming that he fired his gun in the air to stop a knife fight in Columbus, Ohio, accidentally shot an eight-year old girl. The girl was later found by police lying in the park in critical condition with a gunshot wound that required surgery. However, she is expected to survive. 28-year old Torrance …
Many people were injured in gun accidents today, with mostly minimal press coverage. Two of the accidents occurred in the Philadelphia area. On the Drexel campus in West Philadelphia, a man accidentally shot himself in the leg inside a Shake Shack restaurant. Given the number of recent mass shootings, it is not surprising that the …
In Statesville, North Carolina, a man in his late seventies accidentally shot and killed an elderly friend who had brought a gun to his home. “It looks like it could possibly be an accidental shooting,” a police Captain said. “The suspect and the victim knew each other very well and possibly were looking at guns, …
In Palo Alto, California, two young men were shot and injured in a ghost gun accident. One was struck in the hand and the other in the leg in a local shopping center parking lot when a gun went off while they were smoking marijuana in a truck. A bloodied and loaded handgun with no …
In Wellsville, Ohio a 14-year old boy found a gun in a closet in his home and removed the gun lock. He accidentally fired the gun and shot himself in the stomach. According to police, he was using his cell phone when the gun went off. The boy is expected to recover and may face …
Ashley Cronan of Waterloo, Iowa was accidentally shot in the leg in an incident that, according to police, involved a convicted fellow behaving irresponsibly with a gun. Roy Stewart was arrested after the incident and charged with illegal possession. Cronan was an innocent bystander. “Detectives investigating the shooting interviewed several witnesses confirming that Stewart sustained …
In Piqua, Ohio, three police officers returning from the range after qualifying with their service weapons were struck by shrapnel when a gun discharged while it was being cleaned. All three officers were taken to the hospital. The officer who was cleaning their gun apparently did not know the gun was loaded. According to the …
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 women were shot today as innocent bystanders in gun violence incidents initiated by men or boys. In Tuscaloosa, Alabama, a pair of teenage boys, one 17 and the other 13, got into a spat over insults on social media. When they later engaged in public gunplay, a woman was struck and injured. She has …
In Fort Worth, Texas, an 88-year old woman was struck in the hand by a stray bullet fired in a nearby dispute. She was in her home at the time of the incident. The bullet was fired by one of two men engaged in a dispute at a nearby horse stable. No one has been …
Kenesha Tyson, a Memphis, Tennessee woman involved in an altercation with her boyfriend, pulled a gun in an attempt to frighten him. She says the gun went off by accident, hitting the man in the chest. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Tyson has been charged with criminal attempt 1st-degree murder, aggravated …
In Belleville, Illinois, a 3-year old found a loaded gun in his home and used it to shoot himself. The boy is in critical condition at the hospital. And in Lubbock, Texas, John Carrasco was arrested for illegal gun possession after he accidentally shot his father in the leg. According to the report, Carrasco initially …
Two gun accidents were reported exclusively on Twitter today, making one wonder, once again, how many gun accident injuries are never made public at all. A tweeter apparently monitoring a police scanner reported that a Chicago, Illinois “security officer” apparently accidentally discharged his gun and shot himself in the leg. And, in Laurel, Maryland, a …
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 …
In Houston, Texas, a man shot himself in the testicles at the St. Regis hotel. He was either unpacking the gun or pulling it from his pants when the incident occurred. Source: John Tedesco, “Man at St. Regis Hotel Accidentally Shoots Himself in Testicles.” Houston Chronicle (March 25, 2022).
A Bridgeport, Connecticut man accidentally fired his gun while cleaning it and shot himself in the hand. He was treated at a local emergency room. The report does not explain why he apparently did not know there was a round in the chamber when the incident occurred. Source: “Police: Bridgeport Man Accidently Shoots Hand While …
Larry Beeding, age 44, of Mediapolis, Iowa was charged with reckless use of a firearm and animal cruelty after shooting a round from his handgun at a dog inside a local home. The dog was killed. Another man was struck in the torso and Beeding was shot in the hand by the round that killed …
Several types of common American gun accidents were on display today in cities across the country. In Memphis, Tennessee, a man died in an apparent shooting range accident. Two children found loaded guns at home and shot themselves. Again, in Memphis, Tennessee, a toddler is in critical condition after a self-inflicted shooting. Memphis officials say …
Cordero Currington of Stockton, California shot himself in the leg after shooting and killing another man. Currington was attempting to get away from the scene of the crime when the incident occurred. He was booked by police on “several weapons charges.” Source: “Man Shoots Self in Leg While Running Away after Shooting, Killing Another Man, …
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 …
19-year old Donovan Meinke was arrested after accidentally shooting himself in a domestic violence incident. Elyria, Ohio police announced that the incident also resulted in injuries to the 19-year old woman that Meinke lived with. Although Meinke was already facing felony weapons violation charges from a prior incident in February, in this matter he was …
In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, a woman who was attempting to shoot at an intruder instead accidentally struck her husband, Brent Barnes. Barnes was struck in the arm and the stomach. According to the report, the intruder got away. Source: Jennifer Pierce, “Woman Accidentally Shot Husband Multiple Times Instead Of Home Intruder,” news9.com (March 4, 2022).
In Denton, Texas, two friends were drinking and handling a firearm when it went off, injuring one of them. They say they didn’t know the gun was loaded. The injured friend was taken to the hospital and released. Source: Zaira Perez, “Friends Alleged Drinking, Negligence Led to Shooting at Denton Apartment,” Denton Record-Chronicle (March 2, …