Police: Boy loads gun, shoots 6-year-old girl

Pennsylvania State Police, Carlisle, are investigating Sunday shooting in which a nine-year-old boy obtained a Remington 20-gauge shotgun from a bedroom at a residence on Covered Bridge Road, Cumberland County, loaded it and then shot it at a six-year-old girl.

[concerned citzen]

when will parents learn not to keep a loaded gun in the house? if they feel that they have to then put it out of reach of your children or put a child safety lock on it. how many more children have to die or get severly injurd because another found the gun pulled the trigger and shot someone. maybe next time it'll be the parent instead of the child.

[brundle]

I hope the parents gget charged with not storing the weapon properly. There is no excuse for this to appen if the parents would just be responsible.

[craig]

Oblivously the child knew how to load it from the parents. The main thing I see here is that the parents did not teach the child that it is not a toy. The other quetion I have is how did the gun get past the parents.

[cmg802]

The story said the boy loaded the gun, it was not stored improperly. Just a reminder, gun and bullets are to be stored away from each other.

[Paul]

concerned citzen wrote:

when will parents learn not to keep a loaded gun in the house? if they feel that they have to then put it out of reach of your children or put a child safety lock on it. how many more children have to die or get severly injurd because another found the gun pulled the trigger and shot someone. maybe next time it'll be the parent instead of the child.

Well the gun wasn't loaded. IT looks like the child knew how to load a shot gun. I do not know what is wrong with children these days. When I was growing up we had guns in the house and I knew to never touch them.

[Paul]

brundle wrote:

I hope the parents gget charged with not storing the weapon properly. There is no excuse for this to appen if the parents would just be responsible.

To what level of responsibility? The child was 9. He should know right from wrong. Even if there was a gun lock on it, a 9 y.o. would be able to find the key to unlock it. This wasn't an accident. This boy should have known what would happen if you load a gun and shoot someone.

[Daisy]

Parents fault!

[Paul]

Daisy wrote:

Parents fault!

Why?

[Marc Green Guam]

The 9 yr old will be tried as an adult and will get the electric chair. He deserves it. Guns don't kill people...people do.

PS...i'm kidding

What a useless tradegy...uncalled for..yes, parents fault. No excuses...even an adult shouldn't be able to enter their house and so easily load a gun. Right?

[Paul]

Marc Green Guam wrote:

The 9 yr old will be tried as an adult and will get the electric chair. He deserves it. Guns don't kill people...people do.
PS...i'm kidding
What a useless tradegy...uncalled for..yes, parents fault. No excuses...even an adult shouldn't be able to enter their house and so easily load a gun. Right?

Loading a gun is easy. Play a video game and it will teach you. We are so quick to place blame in this day and age, but accidents happen. It is ashame. But sometimes, no matter what we do to make things safer, people will still die. Cars are the safest they have ever been, yet thousands of people die in car accidents. Guns are the safest they have ever been, yet thousands of people die in gun related accidents.

[JENN]

WOW...a 9 yr old loading a gun and shooting a 6 yr old???? I am 26 yrs old, and have no clue how to load a gun! First off, the gun should not be located where a 9 yr old knows about it!! What is wrong w/ these parents? How dumb can you be? I want to know why the boy would even aim a gun at a 6 yr old girl???? Wonder if they are brother and sister???

[DARK STAR]

I was able to load and fire a firearm at that age
however, I also knew It was a short cut to a
fractured skull.

[Paul]

DARK STAR wrote:

I was able to load and fire a firearm at that age
however, I also knew It was a short cut to a
fractured skull.

Me too. My parents told me where the guns were, what they were capable of doing, and that if I ever touched them I would not be able to sit for a week. If they didn't tell me about them then I night have thought they were a toy.

[Daisy]

Paul wrote:

<quoted text>
Why?

They should've had it locked up and not in reach or loaded for that matter.

[A-Town King]

concerned citzen wrote:

when will parents learn not to keep a loaded gun in the house? if they feel that they have to then put it out of reach of your children or put a child safety lock on it. how many more children have to die or get severly injurd because another found the gun pulled the trigger and shot someone. maybe next time it'll be the parent instead of the child.

If you actually read the article, it says the boy loaded the gun. So what are you talking about "the gun was already loaded"

[Paul]

Daisy wrote:

<quoted text>
They should've had it locked up and not in reach or loaded for that matter.

It wasn't loaded. But you are right, it should have been out or reach or locked if the parents knew children would be around.

[Paul]

On the other hand, you need to be able to easily get to the gun, load it, and have it ready. If you take too many precautions, by the time you unlock or load the gun, it may be too late.

[butch]

this in no way was the parents or the guns fault.this boy has a problem. many people have guns and kids,and don't have this happen.

[craig]

butch wrote:

this in no way was the parents or the guns fault.this boy has a problem. many people have guns and kids,and don't have this happen.

Not the parents fault?? Then who was responsible to teach this child how to load a gun,and shot it.But the thing they did not teach was the responsibility that comes with gun ownership and why not to touch.Also I agree that the parents meant no harm by teaching thier son to use the gun,but should be held accountable in some way. Maybe a punishment on gun safty to kids around the county,I am sure they feel bad for them,that they have to explain to a 6 year old the fact of reality. I also feel for the kid, because he lost a friend, and not really understanding why.

[meeya]

Paul wrote:

<quoted text>
Me too. My parents told me where the guns were, what they were capable of doing, and that if I ever touched them I would not be able to sit for a week. If they didn't tell me about them then I night have thought they were a toy.

Your parents were a lot kinder than we were.
We taught our children about guns- and to NOT touch them if we weren't around.
If they would have, they wouldn't have sat for a month!