Actually it's the stupid parents, but the press chooses to picture an assault style gun and ammunition as if that is what someone bought for a 5 year old. If I searched correctly, it was a single shot 22 and regardless of its intended owner, it was and is always the responsibility of the adult supervising the youngster to make DARN sure the gun was put away empty. That's put away and not left in the corner. Zero fault here for the 5 yr old and 100% fault for the parent/s.
US boy, 5, accidentally shoots and kills sister, 2 | News.com.au

Bud

 

And "Just one of those crazy accidents" is so incorrect I can't believe it. I'm all for keeping Government out of private lives....but the parents are responsible for the death of that child and a good prosecutor wouldn't need much to convince me of negligent manslaughter! Yes, I'm sure they feel terrible but if they are that stupid, they shouldn't have children OR firearms.

 

If that was local, the parents and/or registered owner would be on the hook for incorrectly storing of the firearms and ammunition.
Here, guns are required to be locked up (with trigger lock?) and the same applies to the ammunition. I can't confirm the trigger lock but I believe it's also required.

Growing up, my dad always kept the guns and ammunition locked up seporately (not in same location). The guns where stored in a locked cabinet (in locked detached garage) with trigger locks once they became available (believe this was mom's requirements). Ammunition was in a carry bag, locked in a metal case in a small locked cubby hole in the basement.

If us as kids wanted to get into trouble, it was going to take some effort to aquire both items.

 

Typical photo and print op for the media. That's not a .22, it's far beyond an accident, and although it is something that he very possible will never shake, the 5 year old is not the reponsible party, nor at fault.

I just don't know.

I grew up with guns in the house. I like guns. I like shooting them, cleaning and maintaining them, and owning them. I remember my mom saying at one time that guns were sort of unique in that they were assembled with the precision of a fine watch and had the finish of fine furniture. I knew exactly where my dad's guns were. Sometimes I might have even opend the closet door and snuck a peek at them. As kids, we knew who hunted, whose dad's had guns, and so on. And it was really neat if my dad or one of the other dad's would let us watch them clean them, and obviously when we finally reached the point of being able to touch and ultimately shoot one of them. But we didn't know where any of the other dads kept there guns, and we never saw them unless invited. Such information was on a need-to-know basis. Never once have I touched anyone else's gun, including my own dad's, unless it was handed to me by them. It really was and could be that simple. And no, it didn't apply just to guns. I knew to stand back from table saws, chain saws, etc., not to go in the good china cabinet, nor open the face on one of mom's antique clocks. It wasn't from daily or even weekly or monthly beatings. It was the way we were raised. The parents were in charge, and never once have I looked back and felt deprived of a single thing in life.

 

I too grew up around guns...my Dad wasn't a "gun guy" but he had a shotgun, .22 rifle and a couple of little pistols (given to him by an old friend)...I didn't touch them unless he was there. They weren't locked up, just stored out of sight. I never snuck one out to "play" with or show my friends.

I had a BB/pellet rifle at 9 or so, a .22 rifle at 12-13. That was all I needed. I used his shotgun for hunting when I got a bit older (a real Fox AE grade 16ga btw...valuable even back then...priceless (at least to me)...today).

I've had a lot more firearms since then and still have quite a few handguns and shotguns. Since I haven't been able to afford a good safe, they are secured separately from the ammo in a closet (I don't have any kids). If family with kids visit (not often thankfully) I remove the guns from the closet and secure them in locked gun cases in the garage.

There is absolutely NO excuse for these type of events...and as I said..the parents are completely at fault. Not just for not securing the weapons...but for not teaching their child!

 

Mike, having the ammo in the garage and the gun in the bedroom closet with a trigger lock really sort of defeats the purpose of having a defensive weapon, doesn't it? I know of no one who can gather a gun, unlock it, run to the garage, get the ammo, load it and protect anyone faster than 1750 feet per second.
I'm not knocking the safety your father had, and laud him for his zealous protection of his kids. I just like point and click interfaces.
I will admit, however all my long guns and pistols not used for home defense are safely locked away, and even the home defense weapon(s) are not where my grandkids can even see them, much less gain access to them.

 

IMO, bottom line is all of us legal gun owners that practice all safety rules, including using common sense on and off the range, in a house with kids and guns in transit, etc all may have to pay the price and adhere to more laws!!!...

Congrats to all responsible gun owners....

 

Larry, As mentioned previously, we don't use guns here for protection. My grandfathers, my dad, and myself, stricktly use them for hunting and the occational target practise.

 

You're right, Mike, I forgot. Hope you never need to, either.

 

The anti-gun crowd is going nuts with the idea that a mfg would make a gun sized for someone that young and that people would buy it for a 5 year old. First the 5 yr old didn't really own the gun, one of the parents did and it was their responsibility to lock it up when not in use (and unloaded). But the point is the training. If 5 years old is too young, then what age would they suggest. I've seen 20 yr olds that should never touch a gun, no training, and 10 year olds that would correct that 20+ for doing something wrong.

Handling a gun properly takes training and practice and that is exactly what a properly sized gun, single shot 22, is intended for. The first gun I could call my own didn't come until I was 12, but we were poorer than dirt. But I can remember target shooting, under supervision, as far back as 6, old pump 22. I would much rather see young kids getting their A B C's from mom or dad, than from someone on the street at 16.

Bud

 

I can't say how young I was when I first started shooting. I was probably 5 or 6 and had my own pellet gun. I was only allowed to use it to shoot pop (soda) cans, and under adult supervision. I got really good at shooting 25-50ft with it which made me a good shot when moving up to larger rounds. The big thing for me was shooting when I was in cadets.

 

Same thing, Mike. Mine was a .22, single shot. Used empty Prince Albert tobacco cans as targets. Grand dad rolled his own and saved me the cans. Always filled one up with bullets for me to use. We're talking 1950's...things were more sane back then. Truman and Eisenhower years.