What do you take from this? 14-year old shoots intruder

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Call 911? A man broke in and pointed a gun at this kid. Luckily for him, he had his own gun and knew how to use it. And I doubt 911 would have been responsive if he had called when the woman initially knocked...it's not illegal to knock on someone's door after all. Kudos to that teen.

I agree.

[Anonymous]

I grew up in a not so friendly large city. My boyfriend at the time was 14 when someone broke in and murdered his father in front of him. He managed to shoot the man. I target shoot weekly and often see teens and tweens with their dads learning to shoot. Knowing how to handle a firearm is a necessity depending on where you live. If everyone knows how to use it and treat it respectfully there is no reason for the trigger locks and safes.

[Anonymous]

Can someone post a link? Do we know the full story? Were the parents involved in anything illegal? Was the kid expecting 'bad guys' to show up? Again, what kind of activity were the parents involved in to leave a gun around the house? Did the attacker know the family?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Am I the first poster here, after all this time, to ask why the 14 YO sibling was watching after his siblings alone??? He did well and good, but isn't that still a little too young?

I don't think 14 yo is too young to watch siblings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I grew up in a not so friendly large city. My boyfriend at the time was 14 when someone broke in and murdered his father in front of him. He managed to shoot the man. I target shoot weekly and often see teens and tweens with their dads learning to shoot. Knowing how to handle a firearm is a necessity depending on where you live. If everyone knows how to use it and treat it respectfully there is no reason for the trigger locks and safes.

Trigger locks and safes are necessary. You are talking about teens. Safety measures need to be taken for small children who are too young to understand the gravity of what could happen if they picked up that firearm. Any responsible gun owner knows that not everyone that enters their home may be trained to use a firearm and that is why safes are necessary.

[Anonymous]

There's a saying that hard cases make for bad law.

While I think that this 14 year old was exceptional and very likely saved the lives of his siblings and himself, the fact is that the vast majority of children--and adults, for that matter--are not capable of handling a firearm during a stressful situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can someone post a link? Do we know the full story? Were the parents involved in anything illegal? Was the kid expecting 'bad guys' to show up? Again, what kind of activity were the parents involved in to leave a gun around the house? Did the attacker know the family?

There is a link in the original post.

[Anonymous]

Why was this person breaking into the house and pointing a gun? Why was there aNOTHER gun, in the house, available to the child? This is strange case- people RARELY just randomly break through a door, when they know someone is home, pointing a gun. The parents must have some uh, unsavory, unfinished business floating around - sounds fishy to me.

sounds like the Wild and Wonderful Whites of West Virginia! yeeehawwww!

[Anonymous]

Trigger locks are a joke.
"See the following video, wherein an untrained 11 year old breaks into three widely distributed gun locks."

http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/13/the-lockdown-gun-locks-unsafe-at-any-caliber/

[Anonymous]

This week, a toddler fatally shot himself after finding a gun in his parent's car. According to Jackson, Miss., authorities, the 3-year-old was sitting in the car at a gas station when he found the gun in the front seat and shot himself in the face. Police questioned the boy's parents, but no charges have been filed.

But these aren't freak accidents. More than 500 children die annually from accidental gunshots. Some shoot themselves, while others kill friends or siblings after discovering a gun.

Here are more scary stats: Americans own 200 million firearms, and 35 percent of homes contain at least one gun. Last year, a study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found more than 1.7 million children live in homes with loaded and unlocked guns.

And if you do own a gun and think your kid won't get to it, listen to this: A recent study published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine found 39 percent of kids knew where their parent's guns were stored, while 22 percent said they had handled the weapons despite adult's warnings to stay away. What's more, age was not a factor in whether children had played with the guns -- 5-year-olds were just as likely to report doing so as
14-year-olds.

Here are just a few heartbreaking cases:

-On July 19, 4-year-old Dylan Jackson shot himself to death after finding a loaded gun at a friend's home during a birthday party.

- A 3-year-old Southeast Washington boy shot himself in the foot and grazed his hand while playing with his father's gun -- which he found lying on the floor.

- A 2-year-old Tampa boy shot himself in the chest with a loaded 9 mm he found in his parent's couch while playing.

- Last February, a 13-year-old boy shot himself with a semiautomatic handgun in the home of his guardian, a Maryland police officer.

- The 10-year-old son of a New York City police officer died after shooting himself in the face with his father's loaded revolver. The boy found the weapon on a shelf in the basement while looking for a ball his mom had hidden.

Is there a way to stop these senseless deaths?

The NRA (National Rifle Association) sponsors classes that teach children if they find a gun to leave the area and inform an adult, but studies show kids who take these classes are no less likely to play with guns than kids who don't attend class.

"The biggest mistake parents make is assuming their child doesn't know where the gun in the house is," says Matthew Miller, associate director of the Harvard Injury Control Research Center. "Kids are smart and if they know there's a firearm in the house, they'll probably figure out a way to get to it."

"We can't expect children to act like adults," he adds. "Parents monitor their kid's diet, curfew, and social life but when it comes to guns, parents often just say, 'Respect the gun, it's off limits' or 'Guns are dangerous.' That type of parenting just doesn't work."

So should parents not tell kids if there's a gun in the home? "First, you have to weigh whether or not you really need a weapon," says Miller. "Do the benefits outweigh the risks? If the answer is yes, you must take safety precautions."

"Be honest with your children," says Miller. "Tell them there is a firearm in the home but explicitly explain that guns are fatal, no matter how children handle them. Don't keep the gun loaded and store the ammunition in a locked safe and carry the key with you at all times. Also, don't hide the combination and don't give it an obvious numerical password."

"The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends pediatricians ask parents about guns in their home in an effort called 'Anticipatory Guidance' which attempts to keep children safe in cars, on bikes, and around swimming pools," says Miller. "It's rare that doctors initiate this conversation, but they should."

"Also, ask the parents of your children's friends if they keep guns at home and if kids will be playing where they're stored," added Miller. "Don't worry about appearing intrusive. It's better to seem pushy and be safe."

Do you think parents should keep guns in their home with children present?



Read more: http://www.momlogic.com/2008/08/protect_your_kids_from_guns.php#ixzz1yuP5de4D

[Anonymous]

This story doesn't change my mind at all about guns - they should not be available full stop.

Nobody knows how this story would have unfolded if the kid hadn't picked up the gun. There may not have been any shots fired.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I think the boy was smart and quick thinking beyond his years. Kudos to him.

It does not scare me away from teenage babysitters one bit.

Yup.

This intruder used a female dcoy to try to gain access. The kid did the right thing. Good for his parents.