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RCSRT8
10-27-2008, 08:56 AM
Boy, 8, shot to death in Mass. gun show accident
WESTFIELD, Mass. – An 8-year-old boy died after accidentally shooting himself in the head while firing an Uzi submachine gun under adult supervision at a gun fair.
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.
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.
Officials with the private club and the firearms group could not be reached for comment. A message left on a club answering machine was not returned. The C.O.P. group's machine clicked off without taking a message.
The sportsman's club was founded in 1949 and describes itself on its Web site as an organization that promotes "the interest of legal sport with rod, gun, and bow and arrow, both directly and through training."
It has eight firing ranges as well as archery and fishing facilities located on 375 acres in Westfield, about 100 miles west of Boston.
spikes40
10-27-2008, 09:15 AM
sounds to me like an avoidable accident.... if the kid was a danger to himself... he was certainly a danger to everyone else on the line as well as spectators...where were the parents and why were they not supervising or at very least holding the kids arms
You must be this tall to fire this weapon.
A gun like that doesn't belong in the hands of an 8 yr old. Sad....
Wow, to allow and 8 year to fire an Uzi is not the smartest thing to begin with. I am sure the parents had to be there to authorize the child to shoot the firearm in the first place.
Chris
10-27-2008, 04:12 PM
prosecute
My kid's 7. If I ever did a bone head thing like that, my wife would put a bullet in my head. I think I would have deserved it too. The only time I got to shoot anything more than a .22 was a 20 ga. shotgun at 15. My son has his nerf guns for now. I just saw an ad on tv for this: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3232406
This is freaking awesome. I am going to buy this for um er him this Christmas and this is the closest to firing full auto for him for a while...
cmagz
10-27-2008, 05:18 PM
WOW give a 8year old a uzi.Stupid I would not let a kid fire a guy till they are 13 or older and let them learn on a 22 rifle first.
My kid's 7. If I ever did a bone head thing like that, my wife would put a bullet in my head. I think I would have deserved it too. The only time I got to shoot anything more than a .22 was a 20 ga. shotgun at 15. My son has his nerf guns for now. I just saw an ad on tv for this: http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3232406
This is freaking awesome. I am going to buy this for um er him this Christmas and this is the closest to firing full auto for him for a while...
I think I'm gonna get one of those and chase Alicia around the house with it! :cool:
spikes40
10-27-2008, 05:43 PM
niiice dave..your first beltfed
I am still amazed at this one.
Phil, if I get one of those also for er um for "Girl" we can have a war.
Satan_3pc
10-27-2008, 10:43 PM
Idiots... he should have nothing more than a .22 at the most in his hands. If not, a bb gun.
He's still a pussy though. I could have shot an Uzi at 8.
Idiots... he should have nothing more than a .22 at the most in his hands. If not, a bb gun.
He's still a pussy though. I could have shot an Uzi at 8.
What are you talking about, you still to this day still blow over on a windy day.
this is horrible.. its still an 8 year old kid that died... stupid or not this is sad
Chris
10-28-2008, 09:41 PM
linky to video and more in depth story
http://www.courant.com/community/news/ec/hc-boyshot1028.artoct28,0,418822.story
Sorry but I tihnk the instructor that was OVERSEEING this activity should be held CRIMINALLY LIABLE.
At no time should a child be in a position to fire an automatic weapon without an adults hand on the firearm. Its just plain idiotic. I have seen adults have accidents with full auto subguns. I grieve for the family and also the club that allowed this to happen.
More than likely the club will cease to exist and the family lost a child.
No winners here. Poor judgement will cost everyone involved.
Chris
10-28-2008, 09:44 PM
speak of the devil
The F*ckin Brady campaign is all over it.....pity
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence is calling on law enforcement to investigate whether a "gun fair" that hosted a machine gun shoot for children where an 8-year-old boy was tragically killed violated a Massachusetts gun law that makes it illegal to furnish machine guns to children.
"Massachusetts law specifically prohibits furnishing a machine gun to any person under 18," said Daniel Vice, Senior Attorney with the Brady Center. "It is unconscionable that the gun fair allowed and encouraged young children to fire machine guns."
The relevant statute can be found in Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 140, subsection 130 and provides that "whoever sells or furnishes any alien or any person under eighteen years of age a... machine gun or ammunition... shall be punished by a fine of not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000, or by imprisonment in a state prison for not more than ten years or by imprisonment in a house of correction for not more than two and one-half years, or by both such fine and imprisonment." (Emphasis added.)
Brady Center President Paul Helmke said the appropriate authorities should investigate whether to file charges against the operator of the Westfield, Massachusetts Sportsman's Club's annual "Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo," where Christopher Bizilj of Ashford, Connecticut died Sunday. The club advertised that the "full auto rock & roll" was "legal and fun," and that there was "no age limit or licenses required to shoot machine guns."
"This needs to be looked at by the authorities and, if it is not illegal, then it should be made illegal. It's tragic that this boy was killed because some people didn't realize that eight-year-olds should not be allowed to shoot machine guns," Helmke said. "Responsible gun owners should agree."
The Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence is a national non-profit organization working to reduce the tragic toll of gun violence in America, through education, research, and legal advocacy. The programs of the Brady Center complement the legislative and grassroots mobilization of its sister organization, the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence with its dedicated network of Million Mom March Chapters.
CONTACT: Peter Hamm, 202-898-0792
SOURCE Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence
Chris
10-28-2008, 09:49 PM
good quote from the Executive Director of the Chiefs of Police Association regarding this
"There are plenty of gun laws on the books. You can't legislate stupidity. Having an 8-year-old shoot a machine gun is beyond all bounds of understanding and comprehension," Sampson said.
"Responsible gun owners should agree."
Responsible parents should have agreed too.
chrismia
10-29-2008, 10:05 AM
i have an 8 year old son and i would never allow him to fire anything other than a BB gun or a .22 rifle.
the father is a moron and it's too bad that the son had to pay the price for his father's stupidity.
This is something that this father will have to live with for the rest of his life now.
I think I heard on the news last night that the father is actually a Dr....smart guy.
chrismia
10-29-2008, 10:13 AM
I think I heard on the news last night that the father is actually a Dr....smart guy.
might be a "smart" guy, but he has shit for brains.
no common sense what so ever.
might be a "smart" guy, but he has shit for brains.
no common sense what so ever.
+100000000000000000000000000000000000
I bet a redneck that didn't even graduate elementary school that drives a tractor for a living wouldn't have allowed this to happen.
Need to add the rolleyes smiley so it's easier to detect my sarcasm. :D
Need to add the rolleyes smiley so it's easier to detect my sarcasm. :D
Any smiley would be a great addition :rolleyes: