5 year old shot by gun owner using gun as a "crutch"

Thanks to the Ohh Shoot blog for providing us with this tragic story. A five year old Oregon girl was

Alysa Bobbitt

senselessly shot by a man in the apartment above when he used his AK-47 as a crutch to get up from his couch. From the blog post:

30-year-old Jon Andrew Meyer, Jr. was visiting friends in Grants Pass, Oregon. He told police that he was using his assault rifle as a crutch to help him get up from a couch when he unintentionally discharged the gun.

The gun burst went through the ceiling and hit 5-year-old Alysa Bobbitt and another woman who were in a room upstairs. They were taken to the hospital for treatment.

Alysa, who was shot in the head, died of her injuries. The woman, who was shot in the torso, is expected to recover.

Meyer was arrested and charged with manslaughter, assault and illegal possession of a machine gun. Police did not say if the assault rifle had been manufactured as fully automatic or if it had been modified later. However, Meyer's lawyer said Meyer had been assured the gun was not fully automatic when he bought it. 

Reports indicate that at the time of the shooting Meyer was the subject of a restraining order that was taken out by his fiancee. In the petition she described him as an unpredictable drug addict who had threatened her with a gun. Reports do no indicate if the judge had barred Meyer from possessing guns as a result of the restraining order.

We don't usually comment on our stories but it is hard not to say that this case was a totally senseless and avoidable shooting. Little girls should not get shot while sitting in their apartments by a careless person with a gun.