Eight-year-old shoots self with Uzi, dies

Praxius

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Dec 18, 2007
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First lesson to teach your child when operating a fire arm.... Aim Away From Face.

The boy lost control of the weapon while firing it Sunday at the Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo at the Westfield Sportsman's Club, Police Lt. Lawrence Valliere said.

The boy was with a certified instructor and "was shooting the weapon down range when the force of the weapon made it travel up and back toward his head, where he suffered the injury," a police statement said. Police called it a "self-inflicted accidental shooting."

The victim was taken to Baystate Medical Center where he died. His name was not released.
Although the death appears to be an accident, police and the Hampden district attorney's office were investigating, officials said.

Did it possibly ever occur to any of them that perhaps most 8 year olds may not be able to control a weapon like this:


An 8-year-old shot and killed himself with an Uzi submachine gun like the weapon shown here.

The club said on its Web site that the event, run in conjunction with C.O.P. Firearms and Training, is "all legal and fun." People will be allowed to fire weapons at vehicles, pumpkins and other targets, it said.

All legal and fun huh? Well I hope it was fun for the kid, cuz that's the last fun he will ever have.

As for legal.... well I guess we're soon gonna find out in the investigation.

Added:

Oh and before someone decides to jump all over this and think I'm going off on gun control or something, I not.... exactly....

I have no beef with people, children even, shooting fire arms in a controlled environment such as a rifle range...... so long as the weapon being used and/or trained on is suitible for the capabilities of the user.
 

Kreskin

Doctor of Thinkology
Feb 23, 2006
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We'll see what the insurance company says after the legal stuff hits the fan.
 

#juan

Hall of Fame Member
Aug 30, 2005
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That is one of the most insane things I have ever heard. Any adult who has ever fired an Uzi would know that it would be too much for an eight year old to handle. The gun types will tell us that even though we lose a kid or two, it's all good fun.

Why in hell would any sane person want to let an eight year old shoot an Uzi? It is only luck that others weren't injured or killed.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
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And gun advocates wonder why they end up looking like nutjobs by association.

Well, this right here is the explanation.
 

Kreskin

Doctor of Thinkology
Feb 23, 2006
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And gun advocates wonder why they end up looking like nutjobs by association.

Well, this right here is the explanation.
How does a parent react to this? There would have to be a lot of soul searching after that.
 

Risus

Genius
May 24, 2006
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What the hell is anyone doing with an Uzi??????

There is definitely something wrong in yankeeland!
 

Colpy

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Nov 5, 2005
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Reality check!

In 2000, chidren (ages 0 to eighteen in the USA died accidentally from the following cases:

6,466 in motor vehicle accidents.....which includes ATVs, etc....

1946 in fires

1236 drownings, of which 40% happened in pools!!!!! That is almost 500 pool drownings.

842 were accidentally suffocated

174 were accidentally shot to death.

An American child is 3x more apt to drown in a pool than to be shot dead accidentally. Believe me, there are one hell of a lot more guns than pools in the USA......which makes pools a lot more dangerous, for accidental death.
 
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karrie

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Jan 6, 2007
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How does a parent react to this? There would have to be a lot of soul searching after that.

I can't even imagine. I just have images of all the times someone assured me that I was being 'overly momma bearish' and talked me into letting my kids do something stupid. I can't help but picture a mom standing in the background thinking 'I shouldn't be letting him do this' as the gun junkies assure her that it's perfectly fine.
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
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Reality check!

I think you need to do a reality check. No one is talking about children and accidental gun deaths. We're talking about the absurdity of what happened to THIS CHILD, and no matter how much more dangerous pools are than guns (because most homes don't have uzis in them), THIS was beyond moronic Colpy.
 
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gerryh

Time Out
Nov 21, 2004
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Reality check!

In 2000, chidren (ages 0 to eighteen in the USA died accidentally from the following cases:

6,466 in motor vehicle accidents.....which includes ATVs, etc....

1946 in fires

1236 drownings, of which 40% happened in pools!!!!! That is almost 500 pool drownings.

842 were accidentally suffocated

174 were accidentally shot to death.

An American child is 3x more apt to drown in a pool than to be shot dead accidentally. Believe me, there are one hell of a lot more guns than pools in the USA......which makes pools a lot more dangerous, for accidental death.


I wondered how long it would take before someone came in to try and diminish the magnitude of the stupidity involved in this"accident".
 

Risus

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May 24, 2006
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I think you need to do a reality check. No one is talking about children and accidental gun deaths. We're talking about the absurdity of THIS CHILD, and no matter how much more dangerous pools are than guns (because most homes don't have uzis in them), THIS was beyond moronic Colpy.
Karrie, you need the reality check. Don't blame the kid. The parents, the gun owner are the ones responsible. Also the yankee gun mentality.

NO ONE NEEDS AN UZI.......
 

karrie

OogedyBoogedy
Jan 6, 2007
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Karrie, you need the reality check. Don't blame the kid. The parents, the gun owner are the ones responsible. Also the yankee gun mentality.

NO ONE NEEDS AN UZI.......

Sorry Risus, I wasn't blaming the child, I was saying 'the absurdity of what happened with this child'. I fully blame any adult who would hand an uzi to a kid.
 

Colpy

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 5, 2005
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I think you need to do a reality check. No one is talking about children and accidental gun deaths. We're talking about the absurdity of what happened to THIS CHILD, and no matter how much more dangerous pools are than guns (because most homes don't have uzis in them), THIS was beyond moronic Colpy.

Well, maybe.

I can't see handing a SMG to an 8 year old kid, that is not what I'm saying.

but the accident was a freakish occurance......I was shooting (.22s) long before I was eight.....

Strange....now the parents will probably sue everyone else......

And these things always wind up as "See.....you shouldn't have guns anywhere near kids"

Just thought I'd head that off at the pass.

BTW been reading Peter Worthington's biography.......he was raised on army bases.....where the troops used to regularly him fire the Vickers MGs.....when he was four.
 

fubbleskag

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An American child is 3x more apt to drown in a pool than to be shot dead accidentally. Believe me, there are one hell of a lot more guns than pools in the USA......which makes pools a lot more dangerous, for accidental death.
so this tragedy is the equivalent of throwing a small child in a pool to teach them to swim in your analogy?
 

Colpy

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 5, 2005
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so this tragedy is the equivalent of throwing a small child in a pool to teach them to swim in your analogy?


Once again, I am NOT advocating handing SMGs to 8 year old kids.....just pointing out that accidental death of a child by firearm is a rare occurance, even in Gun Land.