After all, no one died.

[russ1943]

Colo. Boy Shot With Gun Hidden by Christmas Tree
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published: December 16, 2009
CORTEZ, Colo. (AP) -- Authorities say a 12-year-old Colorado boy accidentally shot himself in the leg while playing with a loaded pistol his parents had hidden behind the family Christmas tree…………….The sheriff says he won't recommend charges because the parents had left the .22 pistol a reasonable distance from the child. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/12/16/us/AP-US-Gun-Christmas-Tree.html?_r=2&scp=4&sq=gun&st=nyt

Information from: Cortez Journal, http://www.cortezjournal.com/
http://www.cortezjournal.com/main.asp?SectionID=1&TM=9960.972

Oh well, at least it was “a reasonable distance from the child”. Does anybody know what a reasonable distance is? Maybe if it had been in front of the Christmas tree “charges” might have been recommended.

[Euromutt]

1. Damn stupid maneuver

The sheriff said the parents had put their other firearms in the safe, which means they had a safe. If so, why leave a loaded firearm around the house, especially when all the parents are going to leave the house while the kids are still at home? It's just bloody stupid.

Not that I think there'd be a whole lot of point bringing criminal charges. I mean, with both parents apparently having to work, a fine or jail sentence would mainly serve to hurt the whole family.

[Mugweed]

2. Hiding a gun behind a Christmas tree?

Sure, no child would ever look there! Me, I usually keep my gun safe from the prying curiosity of children by hiding it under a pile of candy and transformer toys.

[Ready4Change]

8. +1

Couldn't have said it any better.

[Pavulon]

3. Cant regulate stupid.

leaving a weapon unsecured and loaded is pretty dumb.

[SkiBum88]

10. Meh

Dumb when you have nosey children around, yes.
If not, I propose its a good idea.

[lepus]

4. The kid is pretty old to be that stupid.

I grew up in a home with easy access to firearms and so did my kids once they were past nine. At age 12, the kid should have been indoctrinated with gun safety rules and been taken out shooting a few times to remove the mystique of firearms.

[Remmah2]

5. Not my kids.

Same kind of household here. Both my kids grew up shooting, both are currently on the varsity rifle team. Yes, firearms in my house w/no worries about my kids. It's their friends and my relatives I have to safeguard against.

Darwin has a way of weeding out the stupid. Natural selection and evolution.

[eqfan592]

6. I was thinking the same thing.

It's interesting to me that gun some owners would hold such an...well, anti-gun mentality sometimes when it comes to educating their kids about the firearms that are around the house. Firearms in the house + kids in the house - firearms safety training for the kids = a dangerous combination.

[GreenStormCloud]

7. Yes. When I was 11, I had my own shotgun and ammo and free access to both.

To this day - over half a century later - I haven't shot anything I didn't intend to shoot. BTW - I still have that shotgun.

[spin]

9. These parents probably had little or no training on gun safety...

asking them to teach the child might have been futile.

We NEED to have gun safety classes in middle and high school. These classes don't have to take more than a hour or two, but children can learn basic firearms safety including how to determine if a weapon is loaded. At a minimum, they could learn that if you don't know for certain how to check to see if a firearm is loaded, simply leave it alone.

We can all argue about whether citizens should be allowed to own firearms, but the likelihood of the United States ever banning and confiscating the 300 million firearms we have today is extremely remote. The fact is that children without any safety training will occasionally encounter firearms.

I agree that anyone with a firearm in the house should teach their children gun safety and take them shooting. If they are uncomfortable doing this or lack the necessary knowledge, they should take a gun safety class with their children.