I was stunned when I read the news on Boston.com, the website of the Boston Globe and also masslive.com, a Westfield Mass site for the Republican. Yesterday, an 8 year-old boy, Christopher Bisilj, and his father were at the Westfield Sportsman's Club attending a machine gun shoot and firearms exposition, when the boy was allowed to fire a fully automatic Uzi. According to witnesses, the machine gun recoiled, resulting in a head wound for the boy. He was accompanied by his father as he was taken to Baystate Medical Centre in Springfield, where he later died.
Masslive.com link Boston Globe link
Asked to comment on the advisability of an 8-year-old shooting an automatic weapon, Bennett said, "Once we have more information on what happened and how it happened, we'll be in a position to make public statements (on the incident)."
Reports of the incident state that the boy was down range and he was accompanied by an instructor when the incident occurred.
According to both stories, the police are treating the incident as an accident, although it is under investigation by both local police and the Hampden County District Attorney's Office (William M. Bennett), as well as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
Asked to comment on the advisability of an 8-year-old shooting an automatic weapon, Bennett said, "Once we have more information on what happened and how it happened, we'll be in a position to make public statements (on the incident)." (sorry, can't get the block quote to work).
First, I am uncomfortable with an 8 year-old handling a firearm, period. I know there are many folks who believe that if you take the necessary pre-cautions and teach proper gun safey, then it is o.k. I can see that being the case for a BB gun, or a small rifle, but we're talking about a freakin' UZI here. In the comments on the Globe site I've read statements from gun enthusiasts as well as an instructor who say the kick back on an UZI is big for a full-sized adult, not to mention a little kid.
My heart goes out to this family. They have tragically lost their precious son. Nothing they do or say can bring him back. It makes me sad. But, it also makes me mad that it could have been prevented. Who is responsible for the idocy that puts military grade weapons in the hand of a small boy, supervised or not?
IS this an actionable offense legally? What do federal gun laws and Massachusetts state laws say about such events? I admit I am clueless. Shouldn't there at lease be a minimum age for handling such a dangerous weapon? It's sixteen and 1/2 to drive a car in Massachusetts.
My mother-in-law just asked me on Friday what Obama's stance on gun control was, and I found a quote from February on MSMBC First read where he said that the second amendment could be subject to "common sense" regulation. MSNBC quote
Where was the common sense yesterday when someone handed this boy an automatic weapon and said "have at it"?
I'll close with a poll; my first.