Reports of Unintended Gun Violence Collected from Media Reports Across the United States
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 Fairview Township, Pennsylvania, a 17-year old boy died in a gun accident at his home today. He was visiting with two friends, age 14 and 15, who were showing him a gun when it discharged. None of the three children apparently knew that the gun was loaded. There is an ongoing investigation. This is …
In Sioux Falls, South Dakota, a 17-year old Native American girl is in critical condition after a gun was accidentally discharged. According to police, Artavius Gregerabdo was handling a gun when it went off and shot the girl in the head. He was arrested and charged with aggravated assault and reckless discharge. The girl who …
In Evansville, Indiana, nine month old Iowa Meriweather was accidentally shot in the face and killed by her father. At the time of the shooting, the girl’s father was handling a friend’s gun that he had found in a couch while his friend was out of the room. The situation was initially complicated because the …
Two people were injured today when guns were accidentally discharged. In each incident the victim was not in the room where the gun was fired. At John Wayne airport in Orange County, California, a sheriff’s deputy accidentally fired his service weapon at 7 AM this morning. The round penetrated a wall and hit an airport …
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 …
Two children found guns in their homes and accidentally shot and killed themselves today. In Saginaw, Michigan, a five-year old boy found a gun. According to police, he died of “self-inflicted gunshot wounds.” They have called the incident a “tragic accident.” While they investigate to determine how the boy got ahold of the gun, “their …
In Idaho Falls, Idaho, a teenager accidentally shot and injured himself with a gun he found in a local canal. The Sheriff’s Office says a 16-year-old and 14-year-old were handling a gun when it accidentally fired, hitting the 14-year old. He was taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. A statement issued by …
In LaGrange, Georgia, 22-year old Haley Newsom was shot in the head and killed in an apparent gun accident on Sunday. According to a statement issued by the Troup County Sheriff’s Office: “After speaking with witnesses in the home, investigators have determined that the following occurred. A 17-year-old white male identified as Cameryn Phillips was …
In a Detroit, Michigan accident, a 13-year old boy died when he mishandled a gun. There were no adults home at the time, but another child was present. It is unclear how the boy gained access to the gun. Source: Dane Kelly, “13-year-old Boy Killed in Accidental Shooting on Detroit’s West Side,” Click on Detroit …
In an accident reminiscent of the journal entry just two days ago on June 29, two men were showing each other their guns today when one of the guns went off. A 30-year old Macon, Georgia man, Westley Faulks, was killed. The shooter, 28-year old Tevin Pleas, “thought he’d cleared his weapon to show Faulks …
In Chesterfield, Virginia, two men were handling a firearm when it accidentally went off. The man who was inadvertently shot later died at the hospital. The second man, a 23-year old, was arrested and charged with “felony reckless handling of a firearm.” There is an ongoing investigation. Source: “Man Charged in Connection to Deadly Shooting …
A 16-year old boy was charged with negligent homicide in Phoenix, Arizona after he accidentally shot and killed 16-year old Kinesha Hill while handling a firearm. Because he is a minor, the boy’s name was not released. Source: “16-year-old Girl Dead after Gun Discharges in Phoenix Home,” Arizona Daily Sun (June 22, 2020).
19-year old Teshawn Bragg of Columbus Ohio suffered life-threatening injuries when he was accidentally shot by a 15-year old who was handling a gun. Police are investigating and have charged the 15-year old in juvenile court. Bragg is hospitalized in critical condition. Source: Jim Woods, “Young Man Will Survive after Being Seriously Injured in Shooting,” …
In Las Vegas, Nevada, a woman was shot and killed at an apartment complex when she and a man dropped a gun that they were looking at. According to police, the man said “that he and the woman both grabbed for the gun when it fell, and it accidentally went off, striking the woman.” A …
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).
In Phoenix, Arizona, a four-year old boy is in a medically induced coma after being accidentally shot in the head by his 15-year old uncle. The boy’s father, Jose Solis, handed the gun to his 15-year old brother and the gun went off while the 15 year-old was handling it. “Jose was looking at his …
Two men were shot and killed at gatherings today where someone present was handling a gun. One of the gun accidents occurred in Cleveland Ohio. The other was in Houston, Texas, continuing a depressing pattern of unintentional shootings in and around that city. In Cleveland, a 25-year old man was shot in the chest and …
20-year old Keaton Sexton died today in Frankfort, Kentucky when a bullet passed through his apartment wall. Another 20-year-old, Trevor Fridenmaker, of Frankfort, was handling a pistol in the next apartment when it accidentally discharged. “There’s no belief there was any ill intent,” a Police Captain said. “Through investigation, it was determined the round that …
There was a fatal gun accident today in Katy, Texas. An unidentified woman was accidentally shot and killed when two friends were handling a gun. According to a report, the women asked to see the gun and it went off while it was being handed to her. The men remained on the scene and attempted …
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 …