Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
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 …
Three children, aged 4, 7, and 11 were shot and injured or killed when they found loaded guns today. A fourth child, age 14, was shot and killed with a ghost gun he had built. In Lexington, Kentucky, a four-year old was injured in a gun accident that police have determined was accidental. However, the …
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, …
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 …
Three more two-year olds were shot and killed today after small children found unattended loaded guns in their homes. Four American two-year olds have died from unintended gun violence in just two days. In Callaway, Florida, a four-year old shot a two-year old sibling, according to the Sheriff’s Office. “We’ll be evaluating and gathering evidence. …
Heather Sitton, an Indiantown, Florida mother of three, was struck in the shoulder by a stray bullet fired by neighbors who were using their backyard for target practice. The bullet passed through her collarbone and exited the other shoulder. She was flown to the hospital and is expected to survive. Heather, her children, and others …
From a Facebook post made by the sheriff’s office in Nagadoches County, Texas, we learn today that two young boys were playing in a bedroom with a .380 semi-automatic pistol that had been left unattended. The boys, one ten and the other 13, had been shooting earlier in the day under adult supervision. When the boys …
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 …
A 17-year old Tallahassee, Florida girl was arrested and charged with manslaughter after she and a group of kids were passing around a gun in a local apartment. It apparently went off while she was holding it and a 17-year old boy was killed. The news report does not say how the teenagers got the …
An Orlando, Florida man shot himself in the leg in a shooting range parking lot today while clearing his gun. He was inside a vehicle outside “Shooter’s World” when the accident occurred. Source: “Police: Man Clearing Gun Shot Self in Leg Outside Orlando Range,” Fox 35 (October 8, 2021).
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 …
Whitney Cloud, a Tallahassee, Florida corrections trainee was shot and killed in a gun accident during firearms training. She had been with the Department of Corrections since June. “We are absolutely devastated by the loss of Officer Whitney Cloud,” said a corrections official . “As a newly hired officer trainee, Officer Cloud vowed to make …
In Altamonte Springs, Florida, someone called police during a Zoom video conference when they saw and heard a toddler in the video background and then heard a loud noise. Police discovered that the toddler had found a loaded gun and shot his 21-year old mother, Shamaya Lynn, to death. The report does not mention the …
In Pensacola, Florida, a patron of O’Reilly’s Uptown Tavern pulled a gun to show it to other patrons. The incident was apparently caught on video. When he mimed an attempt to return the gun to a shoulder holster, it went off, striking him in the upper torso. “I don’t know if he was pretending to …
Although there were many hundreds of incidents of gun violence on Independence Day, there were thankfully no deaths clearly associated with celebratory gunfire. However, several people were injured in such incidents across the country. Also today, a six-year old Knoxville, Tennessee boy found a gun and shot himself to death. In Raleigh North Carolina, Alexandria …
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 …
In Miami Beach Florida, a Georgia woman accidentally shot her sister in the head while they were filming a video for Instagram. The sisters were riding in a Jaguar SUV at the time of the accident. The woman, Taniyria Akias Holt, age 24, was arrested “on charges of culpable negligence inflicting personal injury and improper …
A good deal has been written about the risks of paint ball weapons and toy guns that are designed to look real. The marketplace has far too many facsimile weapons that can be mistaken as potentially lethal. Police officers frequently report being unable to tell the difference between individuals armed with real guns from kids …
A 15-year old girl died and two children, age 6 and 8, were injured as unintended victims of gun violence today. Destiny Greene, an Albany, New York high school student was an innocent bystander when gunfire erupted at a social event organized via social media. She died at the hospital. “Destiny is the tenth person …
In Lakeland, Florida, a man unsuccessfully hid a loaded gun in a couch to keep it away from children while he and a friend watched a basketball game. A 3-year old found it and used it to shoot his two-year old sister. The girl is in critical condition at the hospital. The gun’s owner was …
In Akron, Ohio, a 13-year old boy accidentally shot a 15-year old girl. The boy was handling a gun in the back seat of a car when it fired. The round passed through a seat and struck the girl who suffered non-life threatening injuries. Also today, more than 10 innocent bystanders were shot in gun …
Police in Orlando, Florida are investigating an incident in which a four-year old child found a loaded gun and fired it. These are the available details according to a tweet by the Orlando police: “Upon investigating, officers determined that a 4-year-old child picked up a firearm and accidentally discharged it. The child suffered a non-life-threatening …
In Escambia, Florida a two-year old was accidentally shot and killed by his mother’s friend, Quentin Wright. At the time of the accident, Wright was putting the gun away at the request of the boy’s mother. They boy, Sebastian Mooney, was struck by a single 9 mm round. Wright was arrested and charged with manslaughter. …
Three children were seriously injured in separate gun accidents today, one in Florida, one in Tennessee and one in Georgia. A 14-year old boy in Miami, Florida was preparing to start working out with his father in the family garage. When he went to move his father’s gun, it went off. The boy was airlifted …
In Tallahassee, Florida, an innocent bystander was killed when two groups of people opened fire at each other in a local gas station parking lot. Police later arrested two suspects and charged them with felony murder. Source: “Update: Two Men Arrested in Connection to Fatal Circle K Shooting,” WCTV.tv (March 24, 2021).
At least three children were accidentally shot and injured today. They were aged 14, 15, and 7. The incidents occurred in states that have been regular sites of gun accidents involving children: Florida, Ohio and North Carolina. The most fully reported of the accidents was in Jacksonville, Florida. Ayva Guthrie, age 14,was accidentally shot by …
Two three-year old children and a five-year old were injured in gun accidents today. Reported facts about each incident are minimal. A five-year old Columbus, Ohio boy was playing with his mother’s loaded handgun when it fired. He is expected to survive. A Wichita, Kansas teenager was handling a handgun when it fired accidentally and …
At Hope’s Closet Thrift Store in Jacksonville, Florida, a “young child” found a gun and shot herself in the hand. She was treated at the hospital. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office says “no criminal activity is being investigated at this time.” Source: Mindy Wadley, “Child Taken to Hospital after Finding Gun in Southside Thrift Store, Accidentally …
On the 8th anniversary of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, at least four children were killed or injured in gun accidents. Three of the incidents involved guns that were found by the children themselves or by other children. The fourth involved a child who was hit by a stray bullet while walking on the …
At the St. Lucie Shooting Center in Port St. Lucie, Florida, a bullet pierced a barrier and struck a shooting range employee. An off-duty police officer was present at the time. She and another officer applied a pair of tourniquets. The injured man was taken to the hospital where he was treated and released. A …
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 …
In Okaloosa County, Florida, a 19-year old boy is under arrest for manslaughter after accidentally shooting his 21-year old friend shortly before midnight. The two men were tossing an AK-47 back and forth, believing it to be unloaded, when the 19-year old, Mathew Gunn, pulled the trigger. Hugo Sanchez, 21, died of a gunshot wound …
Three individuals shot themselves in the lower body today in various handgun accidents. A toddler is severely injured, a man is dead, and another appears to have lost his ability to reproduce. A three-year old in Jupiter Inlet, Florida gained access to his uncle’s handgun and shot himself in the thigh and hand. He is …
In Miami, Florida, Pastor Gregory Boyd was an innocent bystander killed when caught between two arguing groups of men firing guns. Pastor Boyd “was known for the high-energy messages he would deliver at New Birth Harvest Outreach Ministries Churches of Deliverance.” Boyd was walking in front of a shoe store at a local mall when …
An 11-year old and a 12-year old were involved in gun accidents today. In Lake County, Florida, 12-year old Jeremyah Wyatt found an unsecured gun in his home and accidentally shot and killed himself. “This is that one of those calls that deputies don’t want to ever go to — and paramedics. No one wants …
In Orlando, Florida, 20-year old Deontay Haynes was arrested and charged with manslaughter after he accidentally shot and killed his best friend. The charge is a first degree felony with the potential for up to 30-years in prison. He is being held without bail. According to police, Haynes pointed a gun that he believed was …
In Pensacola, Florida, 7-year old Aniyah Nettles was shot and killed, likely by another small child. She was on her grandmother’s front porch at the time she was shot. Police continue to investigate and are not yet certain how the child who shot Aniyah got the gun. Source: Brianna Hollis, “State Attorney will Review Evidence …
Another two-year old Jacksonville, Florida toddler died after an apparent gun accident today. Although some of the circumstances of the accident are unclear, the child and/or a young sibling apparently found a loaded gun in their home. One of them fired it and the toddler is dead. Police confirmed that there were also adults present …
Two children were injured in gun accidents today. In Panama Beach City, Florida, a toddler found a gun in the family car and shot himself in the stomach. He is recovering at the hospital. In San Antonio, Texas, a 14-year old girl was shot in the chest and arm when she was grabbing something from …
In St. Petersburg, Florida, Treyvon Maynor, a 16-year old, was arrested after he accidentally shot his 9-year old nephew with a stolen gun. The boy was hit in the arm and taken to a local hospital. According to witnesses, Maynor was handling the firearm when it accidentally fired. After the incident, Maynor fled the scene …
In Jacksonville, Florida today, police say that a man died from a gun accident that occurred when he mishandled a firearm. They do not believe foul play was involved, although there is an ongoing investigation. No other details were reported. Source: “Jacksonville Man Dies after Reportedly Mishandling Firearm,” First Coast ABC News (May 15, 2020).
Arya Gray, a 15-year old Miami, Florida girl, was accidentally shot and killed by a 17-year old boy who was brandishing a stolen gun. According to an arrest report, 17-year old Thalys Olivera “recklessly brandished” a gun inside the apartment that Arya was visiting, and witnesses told the 17-year-old to put it away. Olivera did …
Five-year old Ja’Cari Ellis found a gun and shot himself in St. Petersburg Florida today. He was rushed to the hospital where he later died. “Our preliminary investigation has so far revealed that this was a tragic accident, that Ja’Cari got a hold of a gun and accidentally shot himself,” a St. Petersburg Police spokesperson …
A two-year old Florida child was shot by a man who was cleaning his gun, according to Escambia County sheriff’s deputies. The child was hospitalized. No further information was reported. Source: “Deputies: 2-year-old Accidentally Shot while Gun Owner was Cleaning Firearm,” WEAR TV (May 8, 2020).
In Putnam County, Florida, a Sheriff’s deputy accidentally shot himself in the leg while attempting to fend off an attacking dog. He was hospitalized, but is expected to recover. According to a spokesperson for the Sheriff’s office, “the dog ran after the deputy, and before he could back out of the yard, the dog charged …
Once again, a young child was shot as an innocent bystander to a violent argument, this time in Jacksonville, Florida. This is the second shooting of a child as bystander to an argument in two days. It is the third gun accident of this type in four days. The victim, Kearria Attison, was 5-years old. …
In a variety of jurisdictions across the country today, accidental gunshot wounds sent people to the hospital, where staff are already struggling to find sufficient resources to manage the coronavirus epidemic. Among the accidents was one in Ormond Beach, Florida, where a 22-year old man was shot in the leg when a .22 caliber rifle …
A school maintenance worker at the Sagemont School in Weston Florida was accidentally shot in the eye by an armed school security officer. The security officer, who worked for a private company, dropped the shooting victim at a local hospital and went home. According to authorities, the security officer, Julian Suarez, was not authorized to …
In Brooksville, Florida, an unidentified man accidentally shot and killed himself while playing with a gun. He was waiting for a haircut at the time. The sheriff’s office called the incident a “horrible accident.” The make and model of the gun that accidentally fired was not released. Source: Associated Press, “Florida Man Waiting for Haircut …
In Tampa, Florida, 17-year old Ivan Johnson died today after being shot with a BB fired from a pellet gun by an eight-year old friend while they were waiting for the younger boy’s father in the father’s car. The BB struck Ivan in the eye. He was taken to a hospital before dying three days …
Of eight reports of accidental shootings today, involving a total of 11 shooting incidents, three occurred in Ohio, one each in Mississippi, Wyoming, Florida, North Carolina and Virginia. None of the 11 shootings was fatal. Two of the incidents involved accidental self-inflicted shootings, three involved young children shot accidentally by others, three involved women apparently …
In Fort Lauderdale, Florida, an 8-year old found his father’s loaded handgun when his father left him alone briefly in the car while shopping. The boy shot himself in the leg. He was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. Just over a month ago, a Fort Lauderdale toddler also found his father’s loaded handgun …
A Daytona Beach, Florida woman, Lauren Sherriffs, was arrested and charged with child abuse after a minor in her care shot himself in the foot with a .40-caliber handgun. The boy found the gun in a closet and was attempting to unload the gun went it off. Initially, the boy told police that he was …
18-year old Jacarie Mozell accidentally shot and injured himself in Ocala, Florida today. According to witnesses, Mr. Mozell was putting a gun in his waistband when it discharged. At the time of the report, Mr. Mozell was recovering at a local hospital. Source: Austin L. Miller, “Ocala PD: Injured Man Apparently Shot Himself,” Ocala Star …
Less than two weeks after 15-year old Bradley Hulett was accidentally shot to death (see entry for December 12, 2019), another Tampa, Florida area teen was shot and killed in a gun accident. 13-year old Steven McQueen was accidentally shot and killed by a sibling. Comments on the newspaper’s Facebook page include the following: Alfred …
A Davie, Florida police officer shot himself in the hand while attempting to shoot at a dog that was charging at him. The dog was grazed by the bullet and is said to be OK. Source: “Davie Officer Shoots Himself While Attempting to Shoot Charging Dog,” 7 News Miami (December 20, 2019).
15-year old Bradley Hulett was shot and killed in Lithia, Florida at the home of his friend, the son of a Tampa police officer. A group of four teenage boys was present at the time of the shooting. According to a subsequent news report about the investigation, some of the boys found the gun in …
A Fort Lauderdale, Florida, a woman was shot in a parked car when her toddler pulled the trigger on a loaded gun. After being taken to a local hospital, the woman was expected to recover. No further information is available about the circumstances of the accident. Source: Associated Press, “Woman Accidentally Shot by Toddler in …
In Titusville, Florida, a nine-year old girl was shot by an older sibling during target practice in the woods. A 34-year old relative of the girl was arrested and charged with aggravated child neglect, apparently because he had left guns and ammunition with the children when he was not present. “Definitely an unusual case, because …
A five-year old child in Englewood, Florida shot and critically injured a 21-month old at home today. An adult was present in the home at the time. According to a report, “[i]nvestigators are working to determine what led up to the shooting. Officers asked the public to call JSO if they know anything about the …
Daniel Sanabria, a 3-year-old in Cape Coral, Florida was shot today by an older sibling. Daniel was taken to the hospital in critical condition. According to reports, the gun used had been locked in a gun safe. The shooting has been ruled accidental. No charges will be filed. Source: Kyra Shportun, Taylor Crehan & Emma …