Uzi, 9yo Girl

Schipperke · Aug 29, 2014

Never let a tragedy go to waste. This is starting to make the rounds in many angles. Range in business 14 years , first accident, yes tragic. Lets close it down.. http://bit.ly/VSDg75

I have a 9yo girl, and if she were inclined to learn shooting, I'd stick with a simple 22LR , that fits her. I've shot automatic weapons, not really my bag.

trickg · Aug 29, 2014

I grew up in a house that had Class III firearms, and I learned to shoot from an early age. I was in my mid teens before I got a crack at the full autos. The level of stupidity and negligence in putting a full-auto Uzi in the hands on a 9 year old novice shooter is unreal. My Dad waited until he knew I was ready for it before he started letting me shoot the Class III guns - there's a level of care and respect that has to be taken with them because for someone who doesn't know what they are dealing with, they can get away from you in a hurry.

Maestro Pistolero · Aug 29, 2014

A fully automatic pistol can be a handful for a full-size adult. The adults really screwed up here.

That poor girl.

zoostation · Aug 29, 2014

There was a little boy killed in Massachusetts in a similar accident a couple of years ago at a range with a full auto Uzi. As I recall in that case the Uzi's muzzle climbed and got him while he was shooting. I believe an instructor was right there in that case too.

Taking your kids shooting responsibly is great but people need to respect the ability of a weapon, especially a full auto, to get away from someone not ready for it.

Tragic all the way around.

Mr H · Aug 29, 2014

This just furthers the concept that "everyone is an RSO", and safety includes a capabilities assessment.

I'd like to know if the girl was warned that the muzzle will want to come up, and why she was firing anything full auto to begin with?

Mack C-85 · Aug 29, 2014

I believe an instructor was right there in that case too.

I both cases I wonder if they were truly "instructors" or were they merely "amusement" operators?

Were they certified instructors, by whom, and how much teaching was really going on???

I really think in both cases, this was no more than a "fun" thing, no learning was intended or accomplished.

Prayers for all involved,

Mack

JettaRed · Aug 29, 2014

Yeah, not good. I can't see this helping the cause of responsible gun handling or ownership. I feel bad for all involved.

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JohnnyE · Aug 29, 2014

In "so many" cases like this, there is nearly a complete lack of perspective. I put "so many" in quotes because there really aren't that many cases like this when you spread incidents like this out over time, and across a population of over 300 million. While sad all around, it is absurd to craft another set of laws or regulations to address situations that happen, well, almost never.

I can't even conceive of what 300 million of anything looks like. Fill a swimming pool with jelly beans and I have no idea how many are in that pool, let alone how many pools it takes to hold 300 million of them. What I can do wrap my arms around a number like 30,000, because that is the size of my home town. The incidents that killed that Mass. boy and Ariz. instructor were about six years apart. Doing the math, one might expect that sort of thing to happen in a town of 30,000 once every 60,000 years. How, or more importantly why, do you chase things like that using laws and regulations?

rob-cubed · Aug 29, 2014

My wife and I were discussing this last night. Frankly I see nothing wrong with a kid of any age shooting a gun... even a full-auto one... but they have to be proven responsible enough to handle it safely first. This girl did know her way around firearms, but FA is a very different beast to put into anyone's hands, especially a child's, and ESPECIALLY if it's a submachine gun. Having an RO nearby is simply not enough to prevent a split-second tragedy.

I plan to take my 12 YO daughter to the machine gun shoot. She will get a turn at the .22 AK if Vince brings it. She can handle it. The UZI, absolutely not. Even I couldn't keep it on-target for more than short bursts.

I feel awful for both families. But I don't think calling for closing the range down is the right thing to do. It was a bad judgment call on the part of the parents, first and foremost. But as usual people will blame the range, access to FA weapons, or the culture of "shooting for fun" as the issue.

Bullfrog · Aug 29, 2014

Mack C-85 said:
I both cases I wonder if they were truly "instructors" or were they merely "amusement" operators?

Were they certified instructors, by whom, and how much teaching was really going on???

I really think in both cases, this was no more than a "fun" thing, no learning was intended or accomplished.

Prayers for all involved,

Mack

I don't know the details of the qualifications, but I know that in the Massachusetts case, the instructor/facilitator said more than once that the boy should be given a different weapon (ie, a semi-auto)... Dad, who was operating the camera, insisted he be given a chance to try the Uzi that his slightly older brother had just used. This was in court testimony.

Vile Shadow · Aug 29, 2014

My sympathies go out to all parties involved. But it was really the instructor's own fault. A 9 year old girl had absolutely no business shooting anything full auto.

And then now to add insult to injury by closing the range down? :sad20:

bullett67 · Aug 30, 2014

My daughter didn't start shooting until age 12, and then it was a bolt action .22. The instructor was standing on the wrong side of her also. If its a right handed shooter he should have stood on her right. Sad all the way around, he's gone and she's probably scarred for life, prayers for all involved.

Uzi, 9yo Girl

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