Missouri 9-month-old fatally shot in his crib by 5-year-old brother, police say

[Rainman]

All these accidental shootings are getting out of hand. Why can't they just amend gun laws so only responsible people can be allowed to own guns? This is another of those gun deaths that should never have happened.

A 9-month-old boy was shot and killed by his 5-year-old brother in a Missouri home on Monday, police said.

The boy found his grandfather’s .22-caliber magnum revolver that was being kept on a shelf built into the headboard in the master bedroom . . . The baby was in a crib in the same room when the gun went off, and a bullet struck him in the head.

Tragic . . .

 

[Rosyrain]

Oh my goodness that is so sad! Why can't parents be responsible and keep their guns locked up? It just baffles me how kids can even get access to guns. My fiance and I were thinking about getting one for when we go camping, but we have already decided that we are going to keep it at his parents house and not even have it around our own home. I would not feel comfortable with the kids here and all.

 

[Rhoda D'Ettore]

They need to be responsible, but they also need to educate their children. I grew up in a home with gun and was taught to give them respect. We knew it was not a toy, and we were even taken to shooting ranges to show the damage that could be done.

Taking guns away is not the answer. Taking guns out of the hands of stupid people is.

 

[Kittyworker]

Guns don't kill people. People kill people. Its obvious that this 5 year old needs to be taught proper gun control. If we had more guns available to children they wouldn't be the things of mystery that they are.

Okay, Im going to end my sarcasm here, but all of those points above have actually been used for reasons that we don't need stricter gun control laws. Yea, Right... I'm quite happy to live in a nation where handguns are illegal.

 

[Mackmax]

Guns don't kill people. People kill people. Its obvious that this 5 year old needs to be taught proper gun control. If we had more guns available to children they wouldn't be the things of mystery that they are.

Okay, Im going to end my sarcasm here, but all of those points above have actually been used for reasons that we don't need stricter gun control laws. Yea, Right... I'm quite happy to live in a nation where handguns are illegal.

Thank god you were just being sarcastic, because I was ready to go on a whole rant based off your comment, lol!
But this is so sad. Its bad enough that the parents own guns in a house with young children, but they were too idiotic to securely lock it up and keep it out of reach, too? Having a gun in your home drastically increases the inhabitants' chances of getting shot, and this is a perfect example of that. How strange that the same weapon you use to "protect your home" is the same weapon that is more likely to kill you than an intruder.
Poor baby, and poor child. He will forever have to live with the fact that he killed his brother because his parents couldn't keep the deadly weapon out of his reach. The boy didn't mean to kill his brother..he probably thought the gun was a toy of some sort. How many of these incidents have to occur in order to for people to realize that we NEED some sort of gun control..

 

[DancingLady]

This is so sad. I doubt if the five year old had a very good understanding of what he was handling. At five some children won't fully comprehend anyway even if they are told not to touch guns. Parents need to lock their guns where children can't access them to prevent a situation like this where a child makes a foolish childish decision with tragic results.

 

[ebs77]

This is so sad! How can people be so irresponsible. A life lost before it has begun. That 5 year old will carry this with him for the rest of his life. I wonder what laws could be put into place to prevent such a tragedy.

 

[Allison2021]

Good Lord! There is nothing but grief to go around for everybody involved. The grandparent, and the parents of those children.
I grew up in a house with guns. Yet, somehow, my brothers and I knew not to touch our mother's hand gun. My father hardly knew she had a hand gun in the house.
Why do some children get that message and others do not understand that message and wish to play with a hand gun?

 

[mrsbright]

Where I live, people are allowed to possess guns, but only if they have a license -- and a license comes just if you prove you are able to shoot properly and to handle a gun and storage it fine, as well as knowing the safety instructions.

I only shot once and talked with the people from the shooting club, but even this short experience was enough to educate me in the basics -- you never point a loaded gun at people, you never put your finger on the trigger unless you're ready to shoot in the moment, you don't storage you gun loaded, and you damn well teach your kids how to handle a gun properly if you have one at home. Kids only shoot air guns, of course, but they know about the stupid things not to do. And I'm pretty sure that : 1) taking the parents gun without permission 2) handling it as a toy 3) having a finger on the trigger 4)pointing it at someone... These are all things that no kid here would ever do. Because they've been taught about it.

Very sad story. I know it'll be hard enough for the parents without suffering the blame on top of that, but to have one dead kid and probably one traumatized kid, that ain't pretty.