Thu Sep 11, 2014 at 04:26 PM PDT
The beat goes on: 100 more GunFAILS, and we're not even caught up yet.
by David Waldman
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TSA agents have discovered approximately 182 guns at airports around the country since we last tallied our GunFAILs in mid-August.
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It's time to catch up with the world of GunFAIL, with another economy-sized package of 100 accidents, mishaps and assorted failures. In fact, we could use two.
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By the numbers, the 100 collected FAILs found between late July and mid-August included 33 people who accidentally shot themselves; 26 kids who were accidentally shot; 11 people who accidentally shot into their neighbor's homes or neighboring hotel rooms; eight people who accidentally fired weapons they claimed to have been cleaning (which of course means they were still loaded at the time); 14 accidents that ended in fatalities; 9 FAILs by law enforcement or security personnel; 15 people who accidentally shot family members or significant others; 6 people who FAILed with their guns while out shopping, dining or otherwise engaging in everyday business in public; 3 people who shot others they mistook for intruders; 2 target shooting accidents, and; 2 people who experienced the growing trend of bathroom GunFAIL.
Stories of special note include:
#13, the Plaxico Burress of the UFC, Joe "Diesel" Riggs, who accidentally shot himself while cleaning a still-loaded pistol, and will therefore miss his scheduled September 13th comeback bout.
#34, in which Los Angeles County deputies, after an 8-hour SWAT standoff, mistook a homeowner who'd been taken hostage for the suspect who'd broken in, shooting and killing him.
#61, in which a woman using Skype to show off a new pistol and laser sight to her daughter, accidentally shot her husband.
#96, in which a Loudoun Co., VA sheriff's deputy accidentally shot his teenage daughter, mistaking her for an intruder.
#98, in which a Colorado man riding a motorcycle was involved in a collision, and accidentally shot himself with his own concealed weapon.
POTTSTOWN, PA, 7/26/14: While allegedly trying to dispose of evidence after her boyfriend’s arrest, a 27-year-old woman accidentally shot herself in the hand with a shotgun. Korrin M. Myers will face a preliminary hearing before District Judge Scott Palladino after one scheduled this week was continued to Aug. 28. Among other offenses, she is charged with receiving stolen property, a felony, related to the theft of a rifle from Berks County. Pottstown Police responded to Myers’ apartment on the first block of King Street July 26 for the report of a shooting and allegedly found her with a gunshot wound to her left hand. “We were advised that the weapon in question was now in the trash can next to the home in the shared parking lot of the multi-unit dwelling,” an affidavit of probable cause filed by Pottstown Police said. After Myers took a phone call, she allegedly told a witness who later talked to police that her boyfriend had been arrested with a firearm registered to her. “(Myers) then stated they needed to get other firearms out of the home and asked the witness to get trash bags,” the affidavit said. The identity of Myers’ boyfriend is not stated in the affidavit, but it makes clear he was arrested in Oley on gun and drug charges. Police reportedly found a “package...wrapped inside two white, plastic kitchen trash bags.” Officers reportedly found a .22-caliber rifle, a PW Arms Mosin-Nagant 7.62x54 bolt-action rifle and a 12-gauge shotgun wrapped in a red blanket. “The barrel of the shotgun was seen to protrude from one of the bags,” the affidavit said. “The portion of the blanket that the barrel of the shotgun was protruding from was charred, indicating this was the weapon that discharged.” Inside the shotgun was one spent shell and four others “still in the ammunition tube,” according to the affidavit. Police later found that the Mosin-Nagant was reported stolen by the state police in Reading, the affidavit said.
LEXINGTON, KY, 7/26/14: A big scare in Lexington Saturday evening when a man accidentally shot a bullet into another apartment. Police say they were called just after 7 PM to the Matador Apartments on Winburn. Investigators say a man there was cleaning a gun when it accidentally went off, and shot through his floor. Officers couldn't say if anyone was in the apartment below, but they do say no one was hurt. Police do not expect to file any charges in the case.
STELLA, KY, exact date unknown: An incident several days ago near Stella has law enforcement officers emphasizing the need for care when using a firearm. This comes after a window of the house in which Louann McCallon resides was struck by a bullet, believed to be accidentally. Investigation of the incident showed that the bullet was probably fired from a rifle and may have traveled as much as a mile before striking the petal of a flower on McCallon’s front porch, then the window before ending its path in a wall inside the house. “Mama was a bit upset, to say the least,” said McCallon’s daughter, Tonia Casey, who was alerted to the situation after her mother mentioned how she suddenly noticed glass shards were on her living room carpet the morning after the alleged incident. “They hadn’t been there before so she’s telling me about it and the main thing that worried me is she kept saying, ‘I don’t know how they got there.’ “So we called the police.” Calloway County deputies were responding to multiple incidents at the time Casey made the call and were unavailable. However, Kentucky State Police Trooper Jody Cash said he was free at the moment and decided to respond to the McCallon home. “Upon arriving, I noticed she had a double-pane window in the front and something had indeed gone through. There was definitely a hole there,” Cash said, further describing his investigation. “So I looked at the pattern of where the hole had formed with the flower, then the window and just followed it into the living room and found it lodged in the wall. I also determined that it had to have traveled some distance, because it didn’t go very far into the wall at all. In fact, all I did to get the round out of the wall was use my hand, no tools.” Cash said though no ballistics test were ordered, he suspects the bullet came from a rifle, perhaps a .223-caliber weapon. “And any rifle round can travel up to a mile or even more,” he said, noting that a large field is present near the front of McCallon’s house. “We’re lucky she was not in that room at the time.” No charges were filed in this case, as it was ruled an accident and no harm came to McCallon, other than rattled nerves. Cash believes the shot came from someone either hunting or taking target practice.
NORTH CHARLESTON, SC, 7/26/14: A bond court judge orders a 54-year-old man to stay behind bars for allegedly murdering his own son. According to court papers, Michael Brown told deputies he was in a fight with his son and went to get a 9mm Starr pistol "in an effort to scare his son." "The son was leaving the residence, the altercation was deescalating and the defendant brandished the pistol. The defendant fired one shot striking the victim in the head. The defendant demonstrated forethought and malice once he left the scene of the altercation to retrieve a firearm and came back to the argument brandishing the firearm," detectives wrote on the court affidavit. The mother and sisters of the victim stand behind Brown. To them, that forethought did not exist because they insist this was an "unfortunate accident. Brown's family members at court explained the close, loving family they are. "We're going to stay in prayer and we're going to stay encouraged but my dad did not murder my brother, my daddy did not murder my brother," Brown's daughter said. Charleston County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to the shooting in North Charleston shortly after 10:00 PM Saturday night. The victim was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. His identity has not been released yet, the Charleston County Coroner’s Office will provide with manner of death and the identification of the victim once determined. This investigation is on-going. Michael Brown, the father of the victim, was still on scene when deputies arrived and was taken into custody. He is charged with Murder, Unlawful Possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime, and Possession of a stolen pistol.
LANCASTER, OH, 7/26/14: A $15 pet fee is what Colonial Estates resident Dallas Stanley was told provoked a neighbor to shoot two cats he was caring for with a rifle during the weekend. “These cats didn’t do nothing. They were in the backyard,” Stanley said Tuesday. “He was trespassing when he did it.” Stanley, 75, was talking about his neighbor, William N. Love Jr., 29, who is accused of shooting two stray cats Saturday. One of them died, and the other had life-threatening injuries. Stanley told officers he also had found another cat killed by gunshots around his property days before. In the process of shooting at the cats, a stray bullet also wound up hitting a neighbor’s trailer, going through the exterior wall and the trailer’s shower. The bullet stopped before it went through the trailer’s rear exterior wall, the report said. Stanley said Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office deputies told him that Love said he had shot the cats when he became angry over the trailer court’s pet policy. There is a monthly pet fee of $15 for dog and cat owners, which includes Love, but no one pays fees for the stray cats that wander the property. “That’s what I was told,” Stanley said. “I don’t know what’s going to come of it, but now he’s in jail.”
MURRAY, UT, 7/27/14: Murray police are investigating a shooting Sunday night. It happened inside the Studio 6 hotel on 6600 South. Investigators say a guest accidentally shot a gun inside his room. The bullet traveled through the wall and into a room. Nobody was hit by the stray bullet. Police cited the gun owner for discharging a firearm within city limits.
ANNISTON, AL, 7/27/14: An Anniston man may have accidentally shot his son while shooting another man on Sunday, police said Monday. Both father and son face charges related to the incident. At about 9 AM Sunday, Anniston police arrived at a home on the 900 block of West 49th Street and found a man lying in a yard with gunshot wounds. Another man, also with gunshot wounds, was walking toward officers, according to an Anniston police press release. The homeowner, Jason Johnston, 37, of Anniston was flown to UAB Hospital in Birmingham for treatment of multiple gunshot wounds. Johnston was not a patient at the hospital Monday afternoon, according to the person who answered the phone at the hospital. Jason Wade Frazier, 38, of Anniston was treated at Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center for “non-life-threatening wounds,” the press release states. Frazier was later arrested and charged with second-degree assault. Police alleged that Frazier’s father, Claud Frazier, 65, of Anniston, accidentally shot his son while shooting at Johnston. The elder Frazier was arrested and charged with attempted murder. He was being held in the Anniston Municipal Jail on Monday. Bond was set at $30,000. Police believe the incident began with a dispute between Johnston and the younger Frazier, the press release states.
EAU CLAIRE, WI, 7/27/14: Eau Claire police are continuing to investigate the accidental discharge of a stolen firearm that resulted in an injury to a juvenile early Sunday morning. Police said today the two juveniles involved were also linked to a stolen car and a burglary. The juvenile was transported to a local hospital for treatment of the non-life threatening injury. It does not appear there was any intent by the shooter to injure his acquaintance, a police statement reported. The names of the two involved have not been released. The incident occurred at 5:32 AM Sunday on the sidewalk near the intersection of Sixth Avenue and Chippewa Street.
LITCHFIELD, SC, 7/28/14: An 83-year-old man accidentally shot himself in the leg while cleaning a gun in Litchfield Monday, according to fire department officials. The man was transported to Grand Strand Medical Center after the accidental shooting Monday afternoon, according to Chief Eggiman with Midway Fire Rescue. It happened on Tradition Club Drive, near the Litchfield Country Club. A helicopter was put on standby but was not needed, Chief Eggiman said.
AVON PARK, FL, 7/28/14: A man who fired three shots into an adjoining apartment claimed he did so accidentally, according to a report released Tuesday. The residents of the adjoining apartment, who were near where the bullets ended up, said the accused shooter told them it was an accident and that he would take responsibility for the bullet holes in the wall, the report said. But, Eli Clay Howard Sr., 29, 1206 S. Verona Ave., Apt. A, Avon Park, was arrested by the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office and charged with firing a missile into a dwelling. A man living in the adjacent apartment said that immediately after the three projectiles were fired into his apartment, Howard ran in and said, “it was an accident, don’t call police,” the report said. The husband and the wife in the adjoining apartment were not injured, the report indicated.
MANATEE CO., FL, 7/28/14: A shooting was reported at the intersection of the US Highway 301 and University Parkway early Monday morning where a 17-year-old was struck by a bullet and killed, Manatee County Sheriff's Office said. Manatee County deputies were notified of the shooting at about 2 AM. Sarasota Sheriff's Office and Florida Highway Patrol troopers said they had a shooting victim with them. They said that two groups of people were arguing near the Royal Palm movie theater off US Highway 301 and someone started shooting. The teenager was hit by a stray bullet and died, deputies said. Her name was Teria'le Rawls, 17. Somebody was taking her to a hospital when the car was pulled over in Sarasota and deputies found her dead inside. Detectives with MCSO continue to investigate. They do not have anybody in custody.
TRAVERSE CITY, MI, 7/28/14: An employee at the Grand Traverse County Governmental Center made a surprising discovery Monday. They found a loaded handgun. Police say the gun was found in a third floor bathroom. The employee who found it immediately called police. They say the weapon belonged to Dan Kuhn from the Police Officers Association of Michigan who had been at the center Monday morning.
PHOENIX, AZ, 7/28/14: Joe Riggs' nickname is "Diesel," but don't be surprised when everyone starts calling him "Plaxico Burress." Riggs was set to make his return to the UFC after eight years away against Paulo Thiago at UFC Fight Night on Sept. 13 in Brasilia. But Riggs shot himself in the hand and upper thigh while cleaning his gun Monday night and had to pull out of he bout, the UFC announced. "We were made aware that newly signed UFC competitor Joe Riggs was involved in an unfortunate accident last night," the UFC said in a statement. "While cleaning his permitted firearm (a pistol), the gun discharged, injuring his hand and upper thigh. Riggs was transported to a nearby hospital in Arizona where he is being treated by physicians. We wish Joe a speedy recovery."
WICHITA, KS, 7/29/14: Wichita police are investigating after a 3-year-old child was shot in the chest in south Wichita. It happened at Lincoln and Emporia just around 5 PM. According to officials, the child found the gun inside the home, and it accidentally went off. “We heard some shots and police coming, and once we arrived here and pulled up, we saw the ambulance and police were bringing a child outside to bring him to the ambulance, and they were pumping on him,” said Lisa Barron, witness. Three other kids were inside the home. UPDATE: A 3-year-old boy has died after what apparently was an accidental shooting in a home in the 500 block of East Lincoln on Tuesday afternoon, Wichita police said. Police said they believe the mother and her boyfriend were sleeping in the house when the 3-year-old located a handgun and accidentally shot himself in the chest, Lt. Dennis Wilson said. The mother and boyfriend woke up when the shot was fired around 5 p.m. and called 911.
OSWEGO, NY, 7/29/14: A veteran police officer “inadvertently” shot his service weapon at a vehicle during a Tuesday evening traffic stop in Oswego. Oswego police said the incident happened around 9:53 PM after the officer stopped a vehicle for speeding in the 2800 block of Route 34. According to Oswego Police Chief Dwight Baird, the officer approached the vehicle, and noticed one of three men inside make a “lunging movement.” Baird said the officer feared for his safety, and drew his weapon. At that time, the officer “inadvertently” fired the weapon, with the bullet striking one of the vehicle’s tires, the chief said. Baird said no one inside the vehicle was injured, and no arrests were made. The officer is a six-year veteran with the department, Baird said. An internal investigation into the incident is being conducted.
CHUBBUCK, ID, 7/30/14: A five-year-old girl accidentally shot by another child has died. Portneuf Medical Center officials say the girl died around 5:30 PM after being shot around 3:00 PM Wednesday. Chubbuck Police have not released the name of the girl. Shortly after 3:00 PM Wednesday afternoon the Chubbuck Police responded to 693 Canal for a report of a five-year-old child that was suffering from a gunshot wound. Units from the Chubbuck Fire Department, Bannock County Ambulance and Bannock County Sheriff’s Office also arrived on the scene to assist. The five-year-old girl was immediately transported by ambulance to PMC for further medical treatment. Chubbuck Police say all indications lead them to believe that this was an accident; however the investigation is still on going.
ROCHESTER, NY, 7/30/14: A Rochester man is recovering after police say he was struck by a handgun during an attempted armed robbery on the city's west side. Police say it happened just after 10 PM Wednesday on Lime Street. According to investigators, a 21-year-old man was walking when a suspect rode up to him on a bike, demanded his belongings and hit him with a revolver. Police say the suspect rode away and the victim was able to call 911 from a relative's house. The victim was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital with minor injuries. News10NBC learned when the relative found out about the robbery, they got a shot-gun and accidentally discharged it. Police say that person is not facing any charges and the investigation into the robbery is ongoing.
LOCKWOOD, MT, 7/30/14: A man arrested on suspicion of accidentally shooting his girlfriend in the chin made an initial court appearance Thursday on a charge of criminal endangerment. Yellowstone County sheriff’s deputies arrested 27-year-old Christopher Ryan Gross Wednesday night after responding to a call in Lockwood of an accidental shooting, according to Sheriff Mike Linder. Charging documents say deputies at the Lockwood home found a blood-covered woman, later identified as Gross' girlfriend, with an "obvious bullet hole in her chin." She was taken to a Billings hospital and “appears to have extensive injuries as the bullet likely traveled down her spine after entering through her chin,” according to the affidavit. Gross initially refused to let a deputy read him his rights "because he believed only people under arrest need their rights read and was not at that time under arrest," the court documents state. He later told the deputy he is a disabled veteran and was very upset at the government. Gross went on to say that he called a local television station to talk about his experience in the military and, in order to make a statement to his girlfriend, grabbed a handgun from the kitchen, according to charging documents. He didn't check to see if the gun was loaded, and while sitting on a couch and swinging the gun up and down, it went off with a round hitting his girlfriend, the affidavit states. Gross then called 911. A preliminary breath test also revealed that Gross had a blood-alcohol level of 0.220 percent, according to charging documents.
PADUCAH, KY, 7/30/14: Paducah police are searching for a man who they say may have information about a gun taken from a table at McDonald's on Wednesday, July 30 around 4:30 PM. According to police, a man told them he left a firearm at the restaurant located on Clark's River Road. He said when he returned to get it, it was gone. They say a white male, in his 40s, wearing a dark shirt and driving a silver or champagne-colored Honda Accord, possibly a 2002-2007 model, may have information about the theft of the gun.
HAVELOCK, NC, 7/31/14: Police say no charges will be brought after a woman accidentally shot her sleeping neighbor Thursday. Brannaird Riley was hit in the upper right arm while sleeping in his bed inside his apartment on Village Court in Havelock. Havelock police say his next door neighbor in the duplex was packing her belongings for a move back to California when she tired to make her 9mm pistol safe. They say Marianne Lee's gun fired while she was cleaning it, sending the bullet through a wall into Riley's apartment. It ricocheted off a wall stud, through another wall and hit the man. The 47-year-old Riley was transported to CarolinaEast Medical Center in New Bern for treatment. After consulting with the district attorney, police said no charges would be brought against Lee.
LOS ANGELES, CA, 7/31/14: A search for an officer's loaded shotgun turned up empty Thursday night nearly 12 hours after the weapon fell off a police motorcycle in South Los Angeles. The search temporarily shut down streets near W. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard near South Normandie Avenue in South LA, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. An officer noticed his loaded shotgun had fallen out of its motorcycle holster, prompting dozens of officers to scour the area in search of the weapon. "They'll be an investigation to determine (how the shotgun fell off), but we believe it was a defective lock in some way," an officer told NBC4. During the search, one officer was bitten by a police K-9. He later underwent surgery and was recovering Thursday night. South LA residents said they were sure police wouldn't find the gun in that area.
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, CA, 7/31/14: South Lake Tahoe Police report that a mentally handicapped child accidentally shot himself on Thursday, July 31st. Police say that just after 4 PM officers were called to the Staples parking lot at 2061 Lake Tahoe Boulevard in South Lake Tahoe on reports of a shooting. When they arrived they found a 10-year-old boy who had shot himself in the hand. Police say the boy is believed to be autistic. The child was then taken to Barton Memorial Hospital to be treated for his wound. His injuries are not life threatening. An investigation determined the boy was taken on a shopping trip by his grandparents, and was briefly left alone in a parked car. That's where he found the loaded pistol in an unlocked glove box, and shot himself. The boy's grandfather is legally allowed to carry a loaded firearm, but police are still reviewing pressing child endangerment charges.
BRYAN, TX, 7/31/14: An 18-year-old died early Friday after he and another man were playing with a gun that discharged. Bryan police said Tyrell Wilson and another 18-year-old were playing with the gun in the 1600 block of Saunders Street when the gun discharged about 10:45 PM Thursday. Wilson was taken to St. Joseph hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 12:43 AM. Bryan police are investigating.
WASHINGTON, IA, 7/31/14: A set of keys hanging from a gear bag is reportedly the cause of an accidental discharge of a Washington Police officer’s sidearm that occurred Thursday evening at the Washington Police Department.
FEDERAL HEIGHTS, CO, 7/31/14: Accidental shooting. A man who lives in the 10300 block of Zuni Street, Federal Heights, was taken to the hospital July 31 because he shot himself in the knee with a handgun. The man said he was just cleaning the gun.
ARLINGTON, TX, 8/01/14: One person was transported to the hospital with serious injuries in what is believed to be an accidental shooting in West Arlington. Early information indicates the victim is possibly a woman and that she was shot in the neck. When police arrived on-scene, she was already being transported by vehicle to USMD hospital in Arlington. Recent details indicates the victim was transported by CareFlite from USMD to a Forth Worth Hospital. The incident occurred in the 4900 block of Sigmond Dr. around 9:45 PM.
SAN ANTONIO, TX, 8/01/14: A man was seriously injured when he was accidentally shot at a home on the West Side. Police say a man in his 20's was alone in an upstairs room at a home on the 5800 block of Mayo Drive around 11:40 PM Friday, when the rifle he was handling fired. The man was taken to University Hospital in critical condition. Police are investigating the shooting.
NEW IBERIA, LA, 8/01/14: The Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office says the shooting that happened at about 1 AM in the 600 block of Pershing Street in New Iberia was accidental and self-inflicted. Deputies say someone accidentally shot himself in the foot. He was taken to a local hospital.
CHATTANOOGA, TN, 8/01/14: Police responded to Memorial Hospital on an accidental shooting call Friday and found that a man had wounded himself in the hand. The victim, Dereck Labron Luster, 34, advised he was at his residence at 1216 Arlington Ave., when he exited the bed to take a plate of food to the kitchen. A small caliber handgun (derringer) became dislodged, fell to the floor and discharged.
MEMPHIS, TN, 8/01/14: A seven-year-old boy was shot in the arm early Friday afternoon after several juveniles playing with a gun accidentally discharged, Memphis Police said. Two suspects are in custody in connection to the shooting. No charges have been filed. The incident took place at around noon in the 600 block Blackhawk in the Westwood neighborhood of Memphis. The child was taken to Le Bonheur Children's Hospital in critical condition but has since been upgraded to non-critical. The shooting remains under investigation.
FORT COLLINS, CO, 8/01/14: A Fort Collins man accidentally discharged a rifle Friday, shooting it through a wall in his home and striking a woman police identified as his housemate, sending her to the hospital. Officers responded to the home on the 2000 block of Derby Court, near Taft Hill and Horsetooth roads, around 8:50 PM Friday after Quinn Lods, 26, accidentally discharged the rifle while handling it. Alexandra Sabbeth, also 26, was struck and transported to Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland for treatment. As of Monday afternoon, Sabbeth was no longer a patient there, a hospital spokesperson said. Neighbors in the area said they didn’t see or hear anything Friday night before emergency crews responded, blocking off a portion of the quiet cul-de-sac.
SOUTH RIDING, VA, 8/01/14: A man in South Riding accidentally shot off a firearm Friday, sending the bullet through a wall and into an adjoining townhouse. Bryan K. Johnson, 47, is being charged with "reckless handling of a firearm," according to the sheriff's office. The gun was a .38 revolver. According to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office, Johnson said he was “practicing trigger pulls” when he shot off the round. Johnson said he thought he had cleared all of the rounds from his gun earlier while he was cleaning it. No one was injured in the incident, which took place on the 42000 block of Rolling Rock Terrace in South Riding.
CLEVELAND, OH, 8/01/14: One of three men hired to protect an East Side beauty shop was hospitalized Friday night after another employee accidentally shot him in the chest, police said. The man who hired them also faces weapons charges. Ferris Bryant, 18, is charged with felonious assault and Amer Muntaser faces weapons charges after Bryant accidentally shot a man in the chest, according to police. An investigation uncovered five weapons - one stolen, one missing and one with a scratched-off serial number. Muntaser hired Bryant, Karon Sims, 20, and Jeffery Gause, 18, to perform various tasks around Volume Beauty Supply overnight, according to a police report. Muntaser locks the men in the store overnight just in case someone breaks in. But he does not give the men keys to get out "because Muntaser does not trust them," the report said. His concerns proved justified about 11:55 PM Friday, police said. The three men told police they were playing video games in the store when they came across Muntaser's five guns: two .40-caliber Smith & Wesson handguns, a .40-cailber Sig Sauer, a .45-caliber Glock 37 and an IntraTec 9MM, according to the police report. Bryant picked up one of the guns, and it fired. Sims suffered a gunshot wound in his chest. The panicked men dialed 9-1-1. Paramedics rushed Sims to MetroHealth Medical Center. He was treated for a gunshot wound to his right midsection, the report said. He was not listed as a patient there Monday afternoon, according to a hospital spokesman. When police showed up, Muntaser agreed to let them search his business, his attorney said in court Monday. Police located the weapons he kept in the store. When asked, Muntaser said he owned all of the guns legally. But police said the Glock 37 9MM was reported stolen from Olivet Avenue on Dec. 4, and the Smith & Wesson SW40VE was reported lost from a Green Road address in Jan. 8. The Tec-9's serial number was scratched off. Police arrested Muntaser on possession of a stolen firearm and receiving stolen property. Both he and Bryant appeared in court Monday. Muntaser was given $10,000 bond, and Bryant is being held on $75,000 bond. Muntaser, of Westlake, is also in the middle of criminal proceedings on felony possession of a dangerous ordinance. He is accused of selling fireworks illegally out of his car in the parking lot of his store on July 3.
PICO RIVERA, CA, 8/02/14: A Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy accidentally shot and killed a man during a gunfight with a wanted parolee who invaded the man's house and took his wife hostage, authorities said Saturday. The deputy mistook Frank Mendoza, 54, for the parolee during an 8-hour standoff that ended with SWAT officers storming his home in the suburb of Pico Rivera to rescue his wife and kill the suspect, said William McSweeney, chief of the sheriff's detective division. He said the confusion occurred after Cedric Ramirez, 24, traded gunfire with deputies who were trying to arrest him for parole violations around 5 PM Friday. Ramirez broke into Mendoza's home through a rear window. Deputies went to the front door to rush an adult and two children out of the house when Ramirez appeared in a hallway and began shooting at them, McSweeney said. The deputies fired back and ran for cover in the front yard. Seconds later, a man ran out of the door. "Believing the man was Ramirez, a deputy fired two shots at the man," McSweeney said. When one of the evacuated residents recognized that the fallen man was Mendoza, deputies tried to rescue him but he was dead by the time paramedics reached him.
NAPA, CA, 8/02/14: 12:30 p.m. 100 block of Corsicana—Officers responded for an accidental shooting.
OMAHA, NE, 8/02/14: Omaha police say an 11-year-old suffered a wound after a shotgun was accidentally dropped during an argument Saturday evening. Officers were sent to the area of 28th Street and Camden Avenue around 8 PM to investigate a shooting detected by the city's gunfire triangulation system, ShotSpotter. Police said officers found a suspect and secured him without incident. According to witnesses, an argument between neighborhood youth prompted Tramor Davis, 34, to emerge from a home with a shotgun. Witnesses told police that Davis accidentally dropped the gun, causing it to discharge. Police said Moreice Stewart, 11, suffered a minor graze wound. Davis was booked on counts of possession of a gun by a prohibited person, terroristic threats and misdemeanor assault. The investigation is ongoing.
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FL, 8/02/14: A Palm Beach Gardens teen faces a manslaughter charge after shooting his friend while drunk and on drugs, according to a Palm Beach Gardens Police arrest report. The shooting happened Saturday on Pinella Circle when police said a group of friends were playing with a 9mm pistol, inserting and removing the gun's magazine while drinking and doing drugs. The shooting happened as the 17-year-old, who is not being named by the Sun Sentinel due to his age, was pointing the gun at different people inside friend's in his apartment. When he pointed it at Feliciano Sabates, 18, of suburban Palm Beach Gardens, he shot Sabates in the chest, according to the report. Police said some of the people at the apartment grabbed the gun and hid it in some nearby bushes. But when interviewed by detectives, they cooperated and led police to the gun. "The information and physical evidence was consistent that this was a careless act rather than an intentional act, thus the manslaughter by culpable negligence charge," according to police spokesman Commander William Brandt. MORE: An 18-year-old grandson of Chip Ganassi Racing co-owner Felix Sabates was killed Saturday night in an accidental shooting. According to The Palm Beach Post, Feliciano Sabates was shot by a 17-year-old when he waved a 9mm gun that the group of juveniles and adults had been passing around the group during a party. AND MORE: A 17-year-old Palm Beach Gardens boy has been charged as an adult with negligent manslaughter after accidentally shooting and killing a friend Aug. 2, according to an arrest report made public Thursday. Julian Brook DeSantis was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail on Wednesday and remains there in lieu of $150,000 bail Thursday afternoon. City police responded to an apartment on the 4000 block of Pinella Circle in the Tanglewood Apartments, south of PGA Boulevard and just west of Interstate 95, and spoke to DeSantis, who initially said that Sabates had been shot by a black male wearing a red shirt and black shorts. After being read his Miranda rights, DeSantis changed his story and said, “I did it. I shot him by accident,” according to the arrest report.
FORT WAYNE, IN, 8/02/14: A fight between friends ended up with one of them being shot in the chest in the early morning hours on Saturday, according to police reports. Police were called to Showgirls I at 2910 Goshen Road just before 1 AM on Saturday. The first officer who arrived on scene found the victim and the suspected shooter with each other. The suspected shooter had his shirt off and was using it to apply pressure to a gunshot wound on the victim’s chest. The officer took over from the suspected shooter and maintained pressure on the would until paramedics arrived. The victim told the officer multiple times that his friend had shot him by accident – that the shooter was his best friend and would never shoot him on purpose. Meanwhile, more officers had arrived on scene and the suspected shooter was handcuffed and placed into a squad car. He told police he was fighting with his friend and was being beat up when he took a gun out of his car and shot his friend. The suspect did have marks on his upper forehead and scratches on his lip and elbow but paramedics did not find any sign of trauma or gun shot wounds on him. He told police the gun was in the back of his car. Police got the .38 black revolver from his car and took it as evidence. The victim was taken to the hospital where they determined he was in serious but stable condition. The suspected shooter was taken to to the police station and released after a detective spoke with him.
NEW MIDDLETOWN, OH, 8/02/14: New Middletown police say a stray bullet from someone target practicing in the woods hit two homes over the weekend. Ashley Wheeler and five young children were home when the shooting happened on Saturday afternoon in the Camelot Trailer Park. Police said the bullet traveled from the woods into Wheeler’s home, through a closet, back out of the home and then across the street into another home. A woman was inside the other home, but was not hurt. Police said the bullet traveled more than 200 feet. The bullet flew over two of Wheeler’s children who were in their bedroom. “They were back there for not even a couple of minutes. Then you hear this big bang. My daughter ran back there and said ‘somebody shot the house’,” Wheeler said. She then saw a hole in the upper part of the wall, and decided to go outside. “I am walking out, there was two more bullets that flew and banged off there,” Wheeler said. New Middletown Police Chief Vincent D’Egidio said the situation could have been a lot worse. “They are very lucky that time of the afternoon that the children were playing, sitting on the floor. Had the bullet been any lower, we could have had an unfortunate circumstance,” D’Egidio said. Wheeler said she was thankful for the outcome.
EVANSTON, IL, 8/03/14: A 31-year-old north suburban man is dead after shooting himself in the head with what he thought was an unloaded shotgun in front of a group of friends Sunday night. Evanston police were called to an apartment in the 800 block of Howard Street about 9:45 PM. The caller said a man had accidentally shot himself in the head, a statement from police said. The victim—identified by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office as Eric Zyzanski—was found “on the floor with a shotgun wound to his head. The shotgun was lying beside him,” police said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital about two hours later, according to police and medical examiner’s office. Several witnesses told police the victim was in his apartment with a group of friends when he got his shotgun and “began showing it off” until his friends “became alarmed and told him to put it away,” the statement said. “The victim ejected 2-3 rounds” from the gun, then “held the shotgun to his cheek, told his friends it was empty and pulled the trigger,” police said. Police said everyone they interviewed “gave consistent accounts of what had happened” and the “body and the evidence corroborated the witnesses’ accounts.” An autopsy is scheduled for Monday.
VICKSBURG, MS, 8/03/14: A 17-year-old has been charged after two of his friends were shot Sunday night as they played a video game, Vicksburg police said. A group of boys, including De'Vonta Gary, were at a home in the Waltersville Estates and were playing around when the shooting happened, police said. The boys were admitted to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, police said. Gary is charged with aggravated assault, police said. Police have not released the names of the other boys, but said they were all under 17.
FLORIDA CITY, FL, 8/03/14: A teenager was shot to death Sunday night in Florida City. Miami-Dade police said officers were called to a shooting on Northwest 13th Street near Northwest Fourth Avenue shortly before 9:30 PM. When officers arrived, they found the 13-year-old boy dead from a gunshot wound. Police haven't identified the victim, but relatives and neighbors identified him as Darin Booker. Lee Flenorr, who lives nearby, said he saw the boy's mother holding his head in her arms when police arrived. Neighbors told police a group of teens were playing with a gun when it accidentally fired, Local 10 News has learned. But the family of the victim believe he was targeted, possibly by some of his so-called friends. "He was a very good kid. He just chose the wrong path to take," said Michelle Jackson, Booker's aunt. "He was hanging with the wrong crowd, and doing the wrong things with the other kids." The owner of the home where the boy was shot spent the morning trying to wash away the blood from the driveway. No other details were immediately known.
JACKSONVILLE, FL, 8/03/14: A 13-year-old boy shot Sunday at an Arlington apartment complex accidentally shot himself, according to Jacksonville police. The boy's injuries were not life-threatening, and police are still investigating what happened. Residents at City Ridge Apartments off Arlington Expressway said they heard a gunshot about 6:40 PM Sunday. The boy was taken to UF Health Jacksonville. Police did not say where he was shot and have not released his name.
WYOMING, MI, 8/03/14: Wiping away tears from his eyes, a Wyoming teen heard he is charged with involuntary manslaughter in the accidental shooting death of a fellow Godwin Heights student. Wyoming Police say 17-year-old Marquis Deshawn Kilgore was playing with a loaded gun while sitting in the backseat of a car driven by Ta’Carhri Richardson, also 17, on Sunday, Aug 3. The gun went off and traveled through the seat striking Richardson. Someone drove the vehicle to Metro Health Hospital and dropped the victim off around 2:30 AM. By 5:07 AM, Richardson was dead. On Tuesday, Aug. 5, Kilgore was charged with involuntary manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. He is also charged with felony use of a firearm, which would add two years to any potential sentence as mandated by state law.
MERIDEN, CT, 8/03/14: A Meriden family is counting their blessings after a neighbor's gun accidentally discharged, sending a stray bullet into their 2-and-a-half-year-old daughter's bedroom. Police said Khaled Elmorsy was cleaning his gun Sunday night when the weapon went off at his condo on North Colony Road. Elmorsy's downstairs neighbor, Tom Hollowell, said his 2-and-a-half-year-old daughter was sleeping in her room when the bullet flew by her bed and lodged itself in a closet door about three feet away. Hollowell and his girlfriend noticed the bullet hole the next day and called police in a panic. "We didn't know what happened," Hollowell explained. "We couldn't even comprehend what went on." Police said Elmorsy never reported that the gun went off. They arrived on scene to examine the damage and promptly arrested him. "He could have hurt someone, and no one would have known because people were sleeping," Hollowell said. Elmorsy was charged with unlawful discharge and reckless endangerment. Hollowell said his neighbor was shaken up and apologetic. "I'm hopeful this experience will make him take more precautions when he's handling his guns in the future," Hollowell said. For now, he's just counting his blessings and grateful his daughter wasn't hurt. Elmorsy bonded out of jail and is due in court Aug. 22. No one answered the door at his condo Tuesday night. Police said they took away his guns after the incident.
CORPUS CHRISTI, TX, 8/04/14: A 25-year-old man took a shot at an alligator gar at Labonte Park Monday morning but ended up with a gunshot wound to his hand, according to a police news release. Corpus Christi police officers responded to Corpus Christi Medical Center — Northwest about 5:50 AM for a report of a shooting victim. The man told police he was fishing at the park on the Nueces River when he saw an alligator gar. He ran to his vehicle and got a handgun to shoot it but somehow shot himself in the hand. Officers smelled alcohol on the man, who was treated and released, according to a police spokesman.
PUEBLO, CO, 8/04/14: A 3-year-old girl was shot and critically wounded Monday morning by a 5-year-old boy in Pueblo. Pueblo police said the girl, who was immediately transported to a local hospital and eventually transported by chopper to Colorado Springs, was in stable condition. Police said the bullet entered and exited without breaking any bones. The incident began when a 9-year-old boy found a handgun in the home. He took the weapon into the backyard, and it was eventually picked up by the 5-year-old, who shot the girl. The 9-year-old told police he learned how to handle the gun from video games. The mother of the victim and her boyfriend, identified as Adrian Chavez, 22, were home at the time of the incident, police said. Chavez fled the scene after the shooting; a warrant was issued and he was taken into custody at about 3:15 PM. Police said the 5-year-old would not be charged because of his age, but Chavez faces a charge of child abuse resulting in serious bodily injury after leaving the gun unattended.
TROTWOOD, OH, 8/04/14: Police in Trotwood are investigating after a child accidentally shot himself in the leg in the 1100-block of Graystone Drive. According to the police report, an 11-year-old boy went into his mother's room while she was on her way home from work and retrieved her unloaded gun. The child then loaded the weapon and went outside and fired once. The noise scared the boy, and as he turned to go inside the house he accidentally fired the gun again, hitting himself in the right upper leg. The child's injuries are considered non-life threatening. The case will be presented to the Montgomery County Juvenile Prosecutor's Office on possible charges of discharging a firearm within city limits.
LAFAYETTE, IN, 8/04/14: Douglas Butler appeared intoxicated when Lafayette police arrived at his house in the 2000 block of Schuyler Avenue around 2:10 AM Monday after receiving a report of a shot fired inside the house, according to police. Butler accidentally fired the handgun into the chimney at the house, according to police. The bullet ricocheted back into the house, and police found the deformed bullet on the floor. No one was injured inside the house, but there was an infant at the residence, and the handgun used in the incident had been reported stolen in 1994, according to police. Lafayette police accused Butler of criminal recklessness with a deadly weapon and took him to jail. Police also removed other firearms from the residence as a precaution, police said.
CROSS PLAINS, IN, 8/05/14: A man is expected to recover after accidentally shooting himself Tuesday. Ripley County Sheriff’s deputies say Jay Crist, 74, of Cross Plains, was cleaning a .22 caliber Smith & Wesson revolver in his home on the 8800 block of State Road 129 when the weapon accidentally fired. The bullet struck Crist in the right foot. Deputies said Crist was transported to Dearborn County Hospital by Rescue 69 for treatment of the non-life threatening injury. Ripley County Medic and Friendship First Responders assisted at the scene.
ORANGEBURG, SC, 8/05/14: An Orangeburg County man was arrested Monday morning for the accidental shooting death of a friend. According to Orangeburg County deputies, 20-year-old Marquis Diondre Stevenson accidentally shot his friend while shooting at two other people during a fight over stolen drugs. Deputies were reportedly flagged down by a nearby resident before noon Monday and told of gunshots in the area of Stilton Road. When officers looked into the report, they found a car with a shattered rear window and a man lying in the front yard. The coroner’s office identified the victim as 20-year-old Semaj Randolph. “We extend our condolences to the families of the three men whose lives were cut short over the past three days by senseless acts. It is imperative that we teach our children, grandchildren, and those that we have contact with about the value of human life as well as the serious and life changing consequences of committing criminal acts,” said Orangeburg County Sheriff Leroy Ravenell. Stevenson is set to go through bond court Tuesday afternoon.
CHERRYVILLE, NC, 8/05/14: A 55-year-old woman faces an attempted murder charge after her boyfriend was shot in her Cherryville home. Vera Nations Morrison told a 911 operator she only meant to scare the man. But Phillip Daniel Hughes says doctors told him Wednesday that he’s lucky to be alive. He also denies allegations he hit Morrison. Morrison told a 911 operator the two had been arguing before she pulled out a gun. Police say she then shot him in his side, although Morrison later told investigators she didn’t immediately realize she had hit Hughes. Investigators say Morrison had been arguing with 43-year-old Hughes, who lives on Waco Road in Kings Mountain. Hughes’ 12-year-old daughter was also present when the shooting occurred Tuesday a few minutes before midnight, police said. They were at Morrison’s 201 Marcus Drive home in Cherryville. Police said officers were dispatched to the home after someone called 911. Operators could hear arguing on the call but no one spoke up to ask for help. Later, a hysterical Morrison called 911. “I just shot my boyfriend,” she said. “He kept on and on, and he hit me in my face. He’s been fussing at me all day, and I shot him.” Morrison told operators Hughes hit her and took the phone from her when she tried to call 911. “Me and him both couldn’t believe it when the gun went off,” she said. “I thought the gun would scare him and make him go on and leave me alone.” Police say Morrison shot Hughes in the lower left abdomen. Hughes then fled in his truck with his daughter and his dog. “I couldn’t believe it,” Morrison told the 911 operator. “I thought it went through the wall, but he said it hit him.” Throughout the 19-minute call to 911, Morrison says she never intended to shoot Hughes. “All I can picture in my mind is that look on his face,” she said. “I didn’t mean for it to go off. I would have never done that in a million years.”
MACON, GA, 8/05/14: Bibb County's coroner says a Macon teenager's death Tuesday morning was accidental. That's according to Bibb County Coroner Leon Jones. He said Wednesday's autopsy for Antrez Felder said he died from a gunshot wound to the head. Felder, a 16-year-old Southwest High School student, died around 4:30 a.m. Tuesday at a Macon housing complex. According to the Macon-Bibb Sheriff's Office, he was found with one gunshot wound to the head inside a home on Bobby Jones Lane, near Nesbit Drive. Some family members told 13WMAZ that they believe the shooting was an accident that happened as Felder pushed the gun under his mattress.
TWILIGHT, WV, 8/05/14: A mother and son in Boone County are in serious condition Tuesday after the two suffered serious gunshot wounds when a firearm accidentally discharged. Police say Phyllis Mooney, 63, and her son Jason Mooney, 37, both were shot during an apparent altercation at a residence along Mable Lane in the Twilight area about 7:30 AM Tuesday. The two are undergoing emergency surgery at Charleston Area Medical Center’s General Hospital. Boone Chief Deputy Chad Barker said an initial investigation shows that Jason Mooney was trying to break his .30-caliber rifle on the ground after an argument when it discharged, shooting a bullet through his leg and Phyllis Mooney’s lower abdomen. Barker said it appears the shooting was accidental and that it does not appear Jason Mooney was threatening anyone with the rifle. Boone Sheriff Randall White said though the shooting appears to be accidental, an investigation is ongoing, and that they are checking to see if Jason Mooney could legally possess the firearm. Barker said arrests may be pending in the case.
TIGARD, OR, 8/05/14: A 17-year-old girl was shot in the foot in a Tigard apartment early Tuesday when her boyfriend and his friend dropped a handgun and it fired through a wall, police say. The girl was driven by the other two teens to Legacy Meridian Park Medical Center before officers arrived to the complex in the 9900 block of Southwest Walnut Street, said Jim Wolf, a Tigard police spokesman. The incident is still under police investigation and no charges have been filed, according to Wolf. A neighbor called 911 about 12:40 AM, after hearing the gunshot, Wolf said. The couple lives in the apartment where the shooting occurred. The 19-year-old boyfriend was being handed the firearm by his 17-year-old friend when it fell to the floor and discharged, Wolf said. Officers later found the trio at the hospital. No one else was injured. The identities of the people involved have not been released by police.
SMITHTOWN, NY, 8/05/14: A 3-year-old boy was accidentally shot Monday [sic] evening in a home in Smithtown, Long Island. Suffolk County police were called shortly before 7 PM to a home on Devon Lane in Smithtown, police said. The child had been wounded in the abdomen by a bullet, police said. Police believe the gun may have accidentally discharged. It was not immediately learned whether the child or someone else had the gun, police said. The boy was taken to St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center in Smithtown, and later transferred to Stony Brook University Hospital, police said. He was in surgery late Tuesday. His injuries were considered non-life-threatening, authorities said. MORE: The accidental shooting Tuesday that left a 3-year-old Smithtown boy with bullet wounds to his belly and arm occurred when his father, an off-duty MTA police officer, discharged his gun, also injuring himself, Suffolk County police said. Police on Wednesday said Fourth Squad detectives are continuing their investigation, but said in a news release that the father accidentally discharged his gun shortly before 7 PM in the family's home on Devon Lane.
KILLINGLY, CT, 8/05/14: State police are investigating the death of a 16-year-old who was accidentally shot inside a Kenneth Drive home Tuesday night. Troopers responded to 84 Kenneth Drive at 7:07 PM after they received a 911 call requesting an ambulance for an accidental gunshot wound, state police said. When they arrived, troopers found the 16-year-old victim unresponsive in an upstairs bedroom. The teen was taken to Day Kimball Hospital in Putnam where he was pronounced dead, state police said. A resident of the house, identified by state police as Kyle Carney, 22, was arrested and charged with second-degree manslaughter and reckless endangerment. State police said that Carney was "recklessly pointing a firearm in the direction of the victim when the rifle discharged, striking the victim in the face." MORE: Connecticut State Police have identified the teen who was killed in the shooting in Killingly on Tuesday. Police said Matthew Regula, 16, of 8 Ballouville Rd. in Killingly, died after suffering from a gunshot wound to the head and neck. Regula reportedly attended H.H. Ellis Regional Vocational Technical School in Danielson.
FORT WORTH, TX, 8/05/14: A 4-year old boy had a close call with a loaded gun Tuesday afternoon inside his Fort Worth home. His injuries are minor, but police want to know how he got the gun. Police say the boy was home with his mother and another young boy when he slipped into his parents’ room, used boxes to climb up to the top shelf of their closet and found loaded .38 revolver. He apparently took it to his room, and at some point, the gun went off. The boy only got a scrape on his forehead, and police say that may not be from a bullet grazing him, but from the gun’s recoil instead. Neighbors are thankful the boy lived and say that his very close call is a good reminder for every parent.
PITTSBURGH, PA, 8/05/14: Police are looking for the man they say accidentally shot his girlfriend after a fight near a Wine and Spirits store on the North Side Tuesday night. According to police, the incident happened around 11:30 PM on East Ohio Street. Police believe the man went to hit his girlfriend with a gun, when it accidentally went off and shot her in the arm. The bullet went through the front window of Wine and Spirits store. Fortunately, the store was closed and nobody was inside. MORE: Pittsburgh police plan to charge a married couple after the woman was accidentally shot in the arm when her husband reached for her cellphone — which the woman carried in her bra along with the gun — during an argument on the street. The Associated Press is not naming the Carnegie couple because police had yet to file charges Thursday. The incident occurred about 11:30 PM Tuesday. That's when police say the 35-year-old husband reached for the cellphone, accidentally hitting the gun in the process. The gun fired, wounding the