Local news
An Idaho nuclear research scientist who had taken her young relatives to Wal-Mart to spend their holiday gift cards was killed Tuesday when her 2-year-old son pulled a loaded pistol from her purse and shot her.
Deputies who responded found Veronica Rutledge, 29, dead in the Hayden store's electronics department in what Kootenai County sheriff's spokesman Stu Miller described as a "tragic accident." Rutledge, who worked at the Idaho National Laboratory, was from Blackfoot in southeastern Idaho, and her family had come to the area to visit relatives.
Rutledge had a concealed weapons permit. Miller said the young boy was left in a shopping cart, reached into his mother's purse and grabbed a small-caliber handgun, which discharged once.
The victim's father-in-law, Terry Rutledge, told The Associated Press that Veronica Rutledge "was a beautiful, young, loving mother."
"She was not the least bit irresponsible," Terry Rutledge said. "She was taken much too soon."
I've never been a fan of carry in bag, purses, etc. People are too apt to set it down somewhere and then you aren't in very good control off the firearm. Which is what happened here.
ReplyDeleteWhich is called irresponsible, right?
DeleteYes, in my opinion, it is irresponsible. Keep in mind, I spent some formative months in basic and advanced training in the military where if you got beyond arms reach of your weapon, a Drill Sgt might just pick it up and walk away with it and you were expected to low crawl after him to get it back.
DeletePurses are just fine for carry as long as the owner can make the cognitive leap that by holding a gun, the purse has to be treated with the same care as the gun itself.
That is just from a safety standpoint.
So you would support a law forbidding such behavior?
Delete"So you would support a law forbidding such behavior?"
DeleteMany states already have such laws Sandra, including my home state of Minnesota. They are called safe storage laws. There are other more general laws that have also been used in cases like this which fall into the area of child neglect/endangerment.
Sandra's question was not answered, ssgmarkcr. Do you support such laws?
DeleteI do Mike, as long as the law is focused at access by children. There are many good examples. Minnesota, Texas, etc. And the technology is readily available to secure a loaded firearm quickly available for defensive purposes.
Delete"as long as the law is focused at access by children"
DeleteDoes that mean people who do not have children would be exempt from such laws?
IMO people with permits to carry should have to carry on their person; not in a backpack, purse, briefcase, car, etc. A person is/should always be responsible for their gun and no excuses for some mishap because the gun was not on them.
"Does that mean people who do not have children would be exempt from such laws?"
DeleteNo Sandra. Leaving an unsecured backpack, purse, etc. that contains a gun is a definite no-no. However, adults who leave a gun secured/locked in their home or car shouldn't be prosecuted if a child breaks in and steals the gun.
I threw in that caveat because Mike's belief is that safe storage also includes being responsible for improper use of a gun stolen during a break-in.
I can't fault a gun owner if their gun is stolen, as long as they made an effort to secure the gun.
DeleteThat's the problem, Sandra. Even reasonable gun rights advocates like ssgmarkcr oppose safe storage laws in the home where no children are present. The problem with that is 500,000 guns are stolen each year. Every one of them is immediately available to criminals. This is a national disgrace, one which the gun manufacturers and sellers are thrilled about, and one about which lawful gun owners should be outraged.
DeleteThere you go Sandra. Mike doesn't feel that already being locked in a big container, those containers being called a home or a car isn't adequate. Sort of like using the "cone of silence" while talking to the Chief inside a secret facility.
Deletehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1eUIK9CihA
If they are willing to break in to a house a gun safe won't stop the gun theft.
DeleteTo many people owning guns, with children in the home, don't secure their guns. Then there are people who do not have children, but children visit their home. We know this leads to deadly consequences, the reports are sadly, not rare.
Sandra, only the most determined and professional burglars would be able to break into a gun safe. Most burglars are not like that, They're, in many cases, druggie losers who want a quick easy take. They grab what's easily available and get out quick. Unfortunately, attitudes like yours contribute to the tremendous flow of guns being stolen each year.
DeleteThey (criminals) will grab the gun safe and crack it open later.
DeleteGun safes aren't going to stop a criminal, but they might stop a child from getting a gun. Your attitude that gun safes are the absolute answer, is childish.
I never said a safe is the "absolute answer." But when you say "Gun safes aren't GOING to stop a criminal, " do you mean never, not even one?
DeleteC'mon, proper gun safes cannot be grabbed and removed easily. They cannot be easily broken into. Even small safes can be bolted to the floor. Things like that would be sufficient to thwart most of the 500,000 gun thefts that take place each year. The result would be, at little expense to the gun owners, many fewer guns would flow into the criminal world and lives would be saved.
"Unfortunately, attitudes like yours contribute to the tremendous flow of guns being stolen each year."
DeleteWhat a crock.
"Even reasonable gun rights advocates like ssgmarkcr oppose safe storage laws in the home where no children are present."
I don't find SS all that reasonable. He certainly supports the basic issues of all gun loons, but how far must a person go to secure their weapon? IMO all gun owners should have a gun safe, if only for a place to store their gun.