Shooting range proposed across the street from a Florida school

Parents and other members of Jacksonville Beach, Florida, are upset today because of a proposal to install an indoor shooting range across the street from a school.

From an article:

The only thing separating Montessori Tides School from a prospective pistol range are the two lanes of Penman Road. The school is 200 ft. from the building the range would open in, and for parents, that's simply not enough space. 

"Accidents happen," said Montessor Tides parent Steve Kowkabany. "We're concerned with 2-4,000 people coming to this range per month that an accident can happen and when it does its within a few hundred feet of all of our children." 

Two other schools would be within a 1,000 ft radius of the range, including a school for autistic children as well as a Duval public preschool. Florida law says that's perfectly legal, but parents say the rules aren't black and white." 

"There's a federal law prohibiting people with weapons that are not locked up and unloaded and licensed within 1,000 ft of a school zone," said Kowkabany. "They claim they can meet that we think that's very difficult to enforce." 

The people who want to open the shooting range acquired a conditional use application, obtained by Action News. In it, they say they are looking for a "safe location for beaches people," pointing out that the next nearest range is 10 miles away. They also propose an "upscale experience," with retail and flat screen TVs. 

Kowkabany says he has no problem with the idea of a pistol range, just not right across the street from where he drops off his two-year old every morning. 

"I own guns, my wife is a former Marine we shoot guns," he said. "We're all for a gun range at the beach but in a safe location."

Even though gun ranges stress safety, incidents certainly do happen at them, often with deadly consequences.  Here is a list of 39 that have happened so far in 2012.

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5-year old Texas boy nearly killed by stray bullet from gun range

A mother in Nevada, Texas, had just strapped in her 5-year old son, Parkin Jones, and was backing out the car when a bullet shattered the back window.  Glass injured her son, but the bullet narrowly missed him. 

The bullet had been fired by a gun range, located only 100 yards away.

From an article and news article:

“It was a loud pop,” she recalled. “I had turned around thinking my tire had popped – one of the kids had maybe left a toy under my car. I put the car in park and got out and was like, ‘Oh my God!’” 

Her son, Parkin, was covered in glass and screaming, but apparently unhurt.
“I’m like, ‘There is a bullet in my car!’” she said. 

A stray bullet blew out the back window, inches from where she just strapped in her little boy.
Jones said it came from her neighbor, the Armadillo Gun Range, which is about 100 yards to the east in the 14000 block of County Road 489. 

The line of fire at the range is in her direction, though rounds usually penetrate a large dirt berm. 

“This is one bullet hole right here,” Jones said while pointing to the fractured siding on her house. 

She showed News 8 four bullet holes scattered on the side of her home facing the range. 

Over the summer, Jones said the range owners took action by adding dirt and building the berm even higher to prevent stray bullets from flying over. But after the incident on Thursday, her relatives say Collin County deputies told them there doesn’t appear to be any criminal intent, so this is likely a civil matter. 

“He said they can’t shut them down unless someone ended up passing away over it or gets killed,” said Dylan Edwards, Jones’ brother. 

“As a mother, it’s unbearable to think about,” Krisha said. “I cried, and I cried, and I cried and I held him. This is dangerous. To every family around here, this is dangerous.” 

An employee of the gun range asked us to leave the property Thursday afternoon and the owners did not immediately return a phone call left by News 8. 

No licensing agency regulates gun ranges in Texas, but the Collin County Sheriff’s Office is investigating. The Collin County Fire Marshal said the business has a proper Certificate of Occupancy.

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13-year old Tennessee boy shot at gun range

A 13-year old boy was at a firing range with his family in Cheatham County, Tennessee, when he was unintentionally shot in the abdomen while retrieving targets, when someone moved some guns on a bench and one of them was unintentionally discharged.  Luckily the wound was not life-threatening.

From an article:

The boy, whose identity and hometown was not released, was shot with a .22 single action revolver, said Randy Cromer, who oversees the CMWA.

He was taken by Life Flight to Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

Cromer said the boy was there with his father and another family member. They were checking on their targets when the shooting occurred.

He said several firearms were on a bench when a woman moved them and that's when the revolver discharged, hitting the boy in the lower abdomen.

Cromer said the injuries appear to be non-life threatening.

He added that several people were at the firing range when the incident occurred.

The incident is being investigated.

The firing range is on Headquarters Road off Griffintown Road in the Petway Road.

Aren't shooting ranges supposed to be places of increased gun safety?

8-year old Iowa boy shot in head at shooting range by 5-year old sister

An 8-year old boy, David Young, was at a shooting range with his father and 5-year old sister in Cedar Falls, Iowa.  His 5-year old sister was firing a .22-caliber rifle, apparently with supervision, when David walked across the firing line.  David was shot once in the head.

From an article:

Eight-year-old David Young suffered a gunshot wound to the head Monday while taking part in target practice at the Black Hawk Park gun range. A source close to the investigation confirmed with us -- the gun was in the hands of Young's five-year-old sister....."I'll guarantee you, some of those guys who had to be there beside me last night with that little boy laying on the range, went home with a little different perspective of the importance of guns and gun safety," said [County Sheriff] Thompson.

From a follow-up article:

The boy, 8-year-old David William Young, wandered across the firing line at one of the firearm ranges at Black Hawk Park at about 5:25 p.m. while a relative was practicing with a .22-caliber rifle. 

The child was shot once in the head at close range, deputies said. 

The boy was conscious and alert after the accident, and officials first thought it was a minor injury, almost a graze, with an entrance and exit wound, said Capt. Rick Abben with the sheriff’s office. 

Later, at Covenant Medical Center, doctors discovered a lump on another part of his head and suspected the bullet fragmented, and part of the projectile went deeper than first thought, Abben said. 

Young was flown to University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City and taken to the Brain Trauma Unit. His condition wasn’t available. 

Abben said he doesn’t expect any charges in the incident, but the case information will be forwarded to the county attorney’s office for review, which is standard procedure.

Kids and guns don't mix, particularly with young children, even with supervision.

Every gun in the hands of a child must first pass through the hands of an adult.

Texas gun range offers birthday parties for young children

How young should children be before going to a gun range to shoot guns? This Texas gun range is offering fun for the family. Children as young as 8 can shoot guns while celebrating with their young friends. From the article:

"The age limit is eight years old. You have to be tall enough to get above the shooting table,” Prince told WFAA. “They're not gonna be left unattended. Parents are gonna be one-on-one, or if there's not enough parents, we'll have range safety officers here to show them how to do it safely."

The "Range Rules" on Eagle's website include the provision, "Young shooters (under 18 years of age) are ONLY allowed to shoot on the range with their parent or guardian; one young shooter per adult. No children are allowed on the range nor are they to be left unaccompanied in the showroom while adults shoot."

Yahoo News noted that birthday parties aren't the only gun-themed events aimed at children. Last Christmas, toddlers in Arizona were allowed to pose for pictures with Santa Clause while holding high-powered firearms.

If you read this blog, you know how many incidents of children finding loaded guns and shooting either themselves or someone else are reported. Kids and guns just do not go together. For adults to encourage young children to shoot guns does not make sense. Adults are responsible for allowing guns to fall into the hands of young children. Learning to shoot a gun does not necessarily equate with safe use of a gun. Even adults are not always safe with their guns. This we know from the many accidental gun discharges of law abiding adults. So Happy Birthday everyone. Be safe.