The distances involved in this firearm death should be a lesson to all of those who pride themselves on how safe they believe themselves to be with their weapons. It also goes to illustrate why those of us who would like to see unfit individuals not have firearms at all, and greater accountability for those who do meet the higher threshold for gun ownership that we advocate. This tragedy serves to underline that these are weapons, including black powder and muzzle loading firearms, not toys, not fetish objects.
From Msnbc.com and the AP:
Ohio sheriff: Accident led to Amish girl's death
A man cleaning his muzzle-loading rifle accidentally shot and killed the girl, who was driving a buggy more than a mile away
FREDERICKSBURG, Ohio — A man cleaning his muzzle-loading rifle shot the gun into the air, accidentally killing a 15-year-old Amish girl driving a horse-drawn buggy more than a mile away, a sheriff said Tuesday.Rachel Yoder was shot in the head Thursday night while traveling to her home in Wayne County, between Columbus and Akron. She had attended a Christmas party for employees, most of them under 18 years old, at an Amish produce farm and was riding home alone when she was shot, Wayne County sheriff's Capt. Douglas Hunter said.
Hunter said his department had traced a trail of blood along the road for about three-eighths of a mile into Holmes County in an area of farms and rolling hills.
Holmes County Sheriff Timothy Zimmerly said investigators figured out what happened after the gun-cleaner's family came forward and after his neighbors reported hearing a shot at about the time the girl was wounded.
The man had fired the gun in the air about 1.5 miles from where Yoder was shot, Zimmerly said. State investigators were checking the rifle for a ballistics match, he said.
"In all probability, it looks like an accidental shooting," Zimmerly said.
No charges have been filed.
Yoder was born in nearby Mount Eaton and attended the Old Order Amish Church, The (Wooster) Daily Record reported. She is survived by her father, 10 brothers and sisters, 26 nieces and nephews and two grandparents.
Hunter said earlier there was no indication the shooting was related to a rash of beard-cutting attacks against Amish men in a feud over church discipline.
Still, the mystery of the shooting in the wake of the beard-cutting attacks had left the Amish shaken and "on pins and needles," Zimmerly said.
Zimmerly said he informed the Yoder family that the shooting appeared to be accidental.
"Obviously, that makes them feel a lot better than if someone might have been targeting the Amish or (if it was) a random shooting murder," he said.
Gun violence in Amish communities is rare but not unheard of. A man shot 10 schoolgirls, killing five, inside a one-room schoolhouse five years ago in Nickel Mines, Pa. The Amish were praised for their forgiveness after the shooting and reaching out to comfort the gunman's widow.
This ought to be treated the same way that killing a person accidentally with a car is treated--involuntary homicide.
ReplyDelete"This ought to be treated the same way that killing a person accidentally with a car is treated--involuntary homicide.
ReplyDeleteDecember 21, 2011 1:33 AM"
Whoa! I don't think the hunters are gonna be too happy with that one. And how's that gonna work out for all of your vigilantes that shoot somebody who's a "threat" only to find out the person wasn't armed and there are no witnesses to support your story?
Democommie,
ReplyDeleteTry not to be an idiot. I'd have a hard time imagining a self defense claim if a person shoots another at a distance of half a mile. If someone without a gun says something menacing, but that person is standing a hundred yards off, what's he going to do? You may not believe that we're reasonable, but we do know the rules, and we can think through the details.
Greg Camp sez:
ReplyDelete"Try not to be an idiot. I'd have a hard time imagining a self defense claim if a person shoots another at a distance of half a mile. If someone without a gun says something menacing, but that person is standing a hundred yards off, what's he going to do?"
Oh, okay, but if that person is 99 yards or 56.4921730 meters away or they say something that's menacing and they're holding what appears to be a gun or knive but turns out to be a broke umbrella handle that they have a strange attachment to--then you're okay with somebody getting shot and if the shooter turns out to be a paranoid piece of shit who likes playing "dress up" and has delusional vigilante fantasies they should just be left free to commit another act of voluntary manslaugter at a later date?
Every time I think you've said the dumbest fucking thing you're capable of saying, you turn around and plumb new depths of teh burnin' stoopit.
Involuntary manslaughter for a negligent discharge sounds about right to me. 2nd Degree Murder should be the right call for the vivilante who fucks up.
ReplyDeleteDemocommie,
ReplyDeleteI wasn't giving you a comprehensive list. I was pointing out an example of someone who is no threat to me. Clearly, you're incapable of deriving a general principle from examples.