8-year-old dies after shooting himself with an uzi

im 8 but im am not going to shoot my self who will give a kid a gun hop he learn his lesson how old was the boy

what kind of supervision was there at the fair?looks like almost none

Look, I know this sounds crazy as shit but...

Guns don't need to be made exceedingly difficult to own or outright banned.

Maybe a somewhat loose psychological evaluation? Thats it.

Do guns kill people? Yes, guns assist people in killing other people.

Am I trying to defend some whacko rhetoric by saying we need them around incase the government goes sour? No. Because you can't defend that.

Is it just for defense? No.

I can't explain why I don't want to see guns illegalized totally or a fair bit of America's firearm culture infringed upon. I can't.

It's illogical, but I think it would be wrong to illegalize them.

The most you could get out of me is that silenced firearms should not be legal at all. That's just too far.

Full autos? Fine. Semi? Fine. Pistols? Fine. Everything else that isn't an outright flamethrower or RPG is fine.

Again, I can't explain why. The closest I can get is that private ownership of arms gives me some sense of freedom. Some sense of control over my life.

If you're thinking I'm some damned loon of a republican, I'm not. I'm a fair bit liberal. Even semi-socialist on occassion. It's a constant point of frustration that I'm the only liberal that is the thinking the near opposite of coming down on firearms ownership.

Sad and infuriating!

How often do we hear stories of firearms negligently handled or stored causing grievous bodily harm or death.

What especially bothers me about this story is the dad a few feet behind monitoring his child. What was the old man doing? What safety precautions were in place for the child as he fired off a weapon?

All Uzis (full size, mini and micro) have an inherent safety measure to prevent accidental or inappropriate handling- its called the grip safety. The weapon can ONLY be fired when direct pressure is placed on the safety (a button on the back strap of the grip.)

I grew up around weapons, I qualified on a few in my day, but from day one I was ALWAYS taught the devastating respect they command. Safety on, don't point it at anyone and if you pull that trigger, be sure you know what are at receiving end of those rounds. I never screwed around, waved about, shot Rambo style with a weapon of any type. That is stupid, reckless and ultimately dangerous.

I wonder, was the grip safe removed or modified? How was the kid firing? The macho from the hip? I am furious at the adults around the boy for letting this happen.

Sad and infuriating!

Guns are not made for any other purpose than to kill. Letting a child hold anything that can kill him makes you a neglectful parent. Teaching a child to kill was vital in 1776, when you needed to protect your land and kill your food.
2008 people, the revolution is over.
Don't make it even seem in any way that these parents are in the right.
Guns are on no level necessary, in any way and especially in the hands of children.

Why the hell would they even allow an 8 year old to shoot an uzi. This is exactly why guns like this should be banned in the states. There is only one purpose for a gun like this and that is to kill people.

I wonder what the father was thinking even taking his child to a gun show?
Horrible tragedy that could have been avoided.

ok duh its a freakn red flag for all parents thats a no brainer!! why did anyone even take an uzi to a fair? Makes no sense.

The truth is that adequate gun laws reduce gun crime to negligible levels. At the moment I'm living in Japan a country of 120 Million where a single gun homicide makes the national news because they're so incredibly rare. (And where some firearms are allowed on a very restricted basis for hunting and collection. It's not a total moratorium.. Don't start frothing at the mouth just yet.)

Meanwhile in Chicago in a single weekend this year 9 people were killed in 36 separate fire arms incidents.

I grew up in the "good" (think wealthy auto execs and professionals) suburbs of Detroit where during the 80s there were more gun homicides in a year downtown than there were in some official "war zones." My mom, my dad and my grandpa have all had guns shown to them on the street or while driving. Twice in the case of my father.

When I was 11 years old, I was allowed to take my little brother up to the corner store for the first time to buy baseball cards and candy with our allowances. On his very first visit with me, another customer stormed in after us. On his way to the back of the store I saw him pull out a .38 that had been jammed into his pants. I dragged my brother out of there just before the store was robbed. The clerk was rumored to have a shotgun behind the counter. Which thankfully he didn't try to use. He lost a bit of money that day, but that's why you buy insurance.

A co-worker of mine at a well known auto industry ad agency grew up in the area and had been shot in 3 separate incidents a total of 5 times. In the third incident when he was shot 3 times and almost died, he himself was armed and had been chasing a thief who had stolen his lawnmower.

Any gun that's not for hunting is intended... is expressly DESIGNED to kill people. They are not toys for small men who like to "make things go BOOM!" They are absolutely not a right in modern society. Owning guns and allowing them to be owned should be considered a crime... reckless endangerment of society at large.

The idea that guns protect people is utter nonsense. If I had had a gun as a kid in the corner store I would've escalated the violence and my brother or I would've ended up dead. The clerk, the responsible armed adult in the situation, had the criminal outgunned and got robbed anyway. Luckily he didn't do anything stupid that would've ended somebody's life.

As you can see, the self defense myth is a pure fear tactic. Unless every man woman and child walks around with a finger on the trigger at all times the Mutually Assured Destruction (yep it's MAD) principal of gun lobbyists completely falls apart. Armed citizens get surprised anyway. They have their own weapons turned on them and sometimes they get killed. They'd be far better off if all the criminals had access to was something you could run from.

To live in society, we all have to give up certain petty reckless freedoms, like taking all our neighbors private property for ourselves, urinating in public, and driving drunk at 100mph, to ensure the safety of others and to guarantee a consistent Freedom, with a capital F, to everyone, young and old, armed or unarmed.

With the exception of tightly controlled hunting weapons which in developed countries across the world are successfully regulated and account for very little violent crime, the only other reason to own a gun is for fun. Yes, that's right. A FUN GUN! Like the one that tragically killed this 8 year old boy.

For all those little men that need to get off with the power of making a big noise and seeing a flash of blinding light:

Go, sit on a roman candle!

For the rest of you:

Do everything you can to change the way these murder weapons are regulated in our society!

Bringing your kid to a gun show may be all dandy, but where's your NRA now?

Whoever was "supervising" him, shouldn't be allowed to own a gun ever.

He Axed for it!

"The weapon was loaded and ready to fire," Westfield police Lt. Hipolito Nunez said. "The 8-year-old victim had the Uzi and as he was firing the weapon, the front end of the weapon went up with the backfire and he ended up receiving a round in his head."

Every American patriot needs to learn how to properly handle a fire arm.

the end

in your right mind if you know about guns, you should know about recoil, and if its automatic, and you would know IN YOUR RIGHT MIND that a 8 year old kid should not be shooting that kind of gun. wake up people! no kid should fire a weapon that powerful! RIP Christopher. The people who handed you that gun should be at fault, not you.

This should have been avoided COMPLETELY.

American kids are 16 times more likely to be murdered with a gun, 11 times more likely to commit suicide with a gun, and nine times more likely to die from a firearm accident than children in 25 other industrialized countries combined.

Kinda defeats the purpose why most people buy guns.

Don't play with fire, or in this case guns! How absolutely awful. My empathy to the parents.

this is why the mainstream left might start to consider gun ownership, because when the shit hits the fan and society collapses, i'm going to want to have some protection against eight-year-old yokel militias.

May i ask a question about ages?

We CANT drink @ 18, but we're allowed to buy a gun?

Drinking causes chemically inhanced stupidity, guns cause stupidity in any way.

Here's an idea...let's outlaw guns! There is greater harm than good coming from them, since they are made to...kill...and stuff...

This is a real shame, just what we need parents teaching thier children to arm themselves with machine guns. How dumb can you be?

this is ridiculous. an 8 year old should not have been allowed to handle a gun that powerful. even if it was under adult supervision.

Tragic. Though I am wondering if 8yr. olds can even have permits to handle these weapons.

that's what he gets for being stupid.

"or just get rid of the guns in the world because in reality that will not solve the problem"

In Australia we have very strict gun ownership laws (especially after the Port Arthur Massacre) and guess what? Gun deaths are almost nil out here.

I'd rather have an eight year old who has never seen a gun becuase they are simply not part of normal society, than one who can fire off rounds at will.

o wow well first of all may he rest in peace. B where the hell were the parents. and third what kids of dumb kid pretends to shoot himself with a gun?

More Social Darwinism.

Who, in their right mind, gives an eight year old a gun? Let alone a high powered automatic machine gun that is notorious for being temperamental?

Surely, surely there must have been some legislation saying a minor can't fire the gun under any circumstances...this is such a terrible waste of life.

why in the hell would you even want to show an 8 year old an uzi? some people shouldn't have kids

I really have no strong feelings on gun control.

I think both sides are raving, whiny lunatics.

On the one hand you have whiny gun control advocates, who scream for regulation or banning of most or all firearms despite there being no indication or evidence that it will have any effect on gun violence. Ironically enough most of them understand and agree that prohibition was worse than legalizing alcohol.

Than you have a bunch of whiny, anti-state, conservative dickholes who've watched Red Dawn one too many times and think that they're Rambo. They ignore every incident of gun violence and earnestly believe that weapons designed to kill other human beings aren't dangerous. Rifles, pistols and shotguns aren't enough for them. They gotta have assault rifles and machine guns and light artillery, etc. etc. etc. But it goes farther than that, the motivations are wide and varied. But one of them is this paranoid anti-state (more anti-liberal really) idea that somehow if the government goes rogue on 'em they gotta be ready for the revolution! Ironically, and it's a delicious irony too, ALL OF THEM are FANATIC supporters of the U.S. MILITARY, as if that was somehow a separate organization from the U.S. government. God that gets me every time.

It's sad that the kid got killed and I wonder what the circumstances really were. But one thing I do know for sure.

If you're using this kid's death to advocate for gun control in a wider sense than just for kids, you're a callous prick.

If you're a pro-gun advocate saying that "guns don't kill people" and that he should have been trained better, you're an ignorant prick.

Clearly gun control is only a good idea in limited circumstances backed up by evidence that it is actually preventing violent crime and insurrection.

But if you think an 8 year old child has any business handling a fully automatic firearm, you're an idiot, a freak and a horrible person.

I grew up down the street from the Westfield Sportmans Club and have been a member my whole life... I learned to make a campfire, fish, shoot a rifle, and shoot a bow there and safety was always number one priority. Learning how to shoot at a young age has taught me to respect firearms. The people that run the club are competent, knowledgeable people. Tragically accidents do happen though.

Really, who brings their kid to gun convention?

a gun killed someone? go figure.

First of all the cocaine thing is just nonsensical. Because guns do not ruin your life, make you do really stupid things and are not addictive. With anything you have to teach people how to use things the safe way. There is NO safe way to use cocaine. You comparing apples to elephants.

Car crashes cause thousands of deaths per year and if not instructed on how to safely use them then there are more deaths. Same thing with guns. Shooting guns actually has some of the lowest accident ratings. I suppose we shouldn't allow people to own really fast cars either

If you educate people about guns and show some pictures of what could happen then people will know to not mess around.

Why punish the competent for what the ignorant do? People should take personal responsibility for themselves, if someone dies or you die its your fault. Not an inanimate object's fault.

I agree with what has been said, no one should let young kids handle powerful firearms, its that simple.

And the NRA is scheduling a rally at the site as we all cry

Maybe 8 year olds shouldn't be using guns.

What fuckin person in their right mind would even allow their child to even go to something like this-parents aut to be found guilty of child endangerment.

That's intense. I hope that's a big red flag for all parents.

it's sad to see that the majority of people's reaction with this story is 'who to blame' instead of a extreamly sad loss of a young life.
I can't imagine being a father going to a gun show with your son & leaving without your son from such a unfortunate event.
irony at its worst.

I love the pro-gun spin!

“This is an education problem, not a gun control problem.”

Of course. That exact same logic could be applied to anything.

“This is an education problem, not a cocaine problem. If an 8 year old is properly educated in the dosage and use of cocaine it should be made readily available. Blame the parents for not providing proper instruction in how an 8 year old should snort coke. Banning cocaine won’t solve anything.”

Doesn’t really make a lot of sense, does it?

Neither does trying to justify why private citizens should be allowed to own, trade and sell military grade weapons.

The NRA/pro-gun movement in the US needs to get realistic about regulating weapons in this country.

I’m still confused as to how and why anyone would be in possession of an UZI and how and why it was available (apparently) for purchase at a gun show!

Is this a tragedy? In the eyes of most, yeah, it is, and for good reason. But look a little further, and pay attention to the opinions of all the other people commenting on this article, and it becomes a lesson. Should all guns be taken off the mainstream market? That's up to the lawmakers and lobbyers, but absence of supply is not the absence of demand; people are going to get their guns, whether you keep it mostly legal or not. Contributing to the black market isn't the proper goal to set. Should small children not be allowed into gun shows? As others before me have stated, just about all legal gun shows are devoid of ammunition, or are at least kept safe in an according manner. Who is to blame for the accident? The parents? The person who handed him the weapon? Were they one and the same? Whether or not there was actual adult supervision is open for debate, as far as I can tell. If you want to know more, you need to find out for yourself. Don't settle for one source. Cross-check before making ASS-umptions.

Here is my beef with the way a lot of people are reacting. Guns are not the problem. It's the lack of understanding, and the lack of instruction on weapons safety that is the problem. Ignorance begets ignorance and the more people promote the negative stereotypes about gun owners, the more that gun owners are going to do the same to others.

Give it a break. Was it irresponsible of the parents to let their child fire that weapon? Maybe, maybe not. Was it irresponsible of the instructor to allow that child to fire the weapon, under the conditions that he did. Yes.
Point made. Case closed.

the "news" is reporting that the gun turned upwards and fired a round in the childs head.

fucking idiots - there is nothing that can be said to replace or comfort the loss of a child. this could have been prevented in SO many ways and it's absolutely horrifying that ANY child is allowed to hold a gun - an Uzi at that. I know nothing besided the novice about guns, but this shit is vile.

there is a list - a »long« and preventable list - of things wrong with our country alone. guns are a major problem, and our children need to be shown that responsibility does not lie in the hands of any weapon.

sad.

Yes it is horrible and really sad. What could have prevented this? Well a lot of things really, but in reality none of them are the gun's fault, it is the misuse and disregard to the capability of a firearm. Do not blame the gun, or say guns should be banned, or just get rid of the guns in the world because in reality that will not solve the problem. What will solve the problem is gun education. Children should be exposed to guns at a young age, in fact 8 years old is a good age. They should be under a lot of adult supervision. Which in this case did not happen.
Now i am not saying "Everyone go tell your kids that guns are okay to play with." When young expose them let them hold it (empty of course) and drill it into their heads that this can kill people if used incorrectly.

In this case its simple, 8 years old is way two young to be firing anything larger than a .22 or BB gun. And with a lot of supervision

So simply, don't take the guns away from the innocent and smart to punish the dumb and ignorant. Firearms education is the key.

This guy should be thrown in jail cause that guy is an idiot. Really its all common sense.

Two things. The instructor was wrong for giving the kid the weapon. If he had been properly supervising the kid while he was firing, it would have NEVER, I repeat, NEVER happened.

Second thing that leads me to believe he had no idea what he was doing....There is NO WAY, a weapon legal in the US, like an uzi, would have been on anything BUT semi auto fire.

I say, take that instructor, remove his license, fine him and give him some jail time. That accident was caused by total negligence on his behalf. Grown men struggle to control a weapon like that on auto or burst, what the hell was he thinking letting a child do the same.

Poor kid. That's what his parents get for being so fucking stupid. I hope the horrific image stays burned in their mind. Now suffer the pain of knowing you killed your child.

Oy. When will people learn.

Really this just boils down to irresponsible parenting, I have a friend that has a 6 year old that shoots a .22 rifle. If your gonna be a parent that teaches your child about guns, you're also supposed to be smart enough to know, that they probably shouldn't handle a weapon that people in special forces qualify for. You can hand your kid a butter knife and they'll be ok, Hand them a chainsaw, Not so much.

and the darwin award goes to...

Kids should not be allowed at these squidbilly gun shows!

You call this protection from criminals? The people at these shows are criminals propagating violent messages under the guise of self-defense. I hope the father gets sent to jail.

What kind of a parent allows an 8 year old handle an uzi. I guess some irresponsible adult or adults will be up on criminal charges. How can a parent live with the fact they allowed their son to play with a loaded gun? Any parents out there, can you tell me. I'm just curious.

my 8 year old girl cousin took out a 10 point buck with a 270. the difference here is that she was taught how to use it properly, as was i when i learned as a kid.

Only a complete moron gives an 8 year old an Uzi, poor kid =(

WHY THE FUCK WAS THE UZI LOADED?!?!
The NRA should hang the person who let him handle it!

These are the people who also are afraid that "Big Government" is going to take away their guns.

I would love to talk to the father. I wonder if he is mocking liberals and chalking his son up to the "product of uneducated gun owners"

that was not a legit gun fair/show. i've been to many myself and never ever have i seen a weapon and ammunition in the same room let alone loaded and being test fired. whoever put on the show should have all licenses pulled.

only thing i've ever seen easily handle an uzi was the great cow guru

Why was the gun loaded at the fair? Isn't that just asking for catastrophe?

Let's go to a bomb fair where they are already counting down to explode.

An uzi?

Isn't there some common sense middle ground that says YES you can own a gun and NO a uzi is not a weapon that can be legally purchased or sold?

There has got to be some common sense with our gun laws.

Can you have a rifle for hunting? Sure.

Can you own the latest military issue tactical assualt rifles with nightvision scopes and armour piercing ammo?

No....or at least you shouldn't. God knows the NRA is fighting everyday to make sure ALL Americans are issued military grade weapons (Why do they need military-grade weapons? Remember: they have this insane fantasy that they are gonna "fight off" the military once the anti-Christ sets up the New World Order. makes sense!)

Why was an 8 year old even there?

Are 8 year olds allowed in casinos? No.

What about strip clubs? Nope.

But a gun show? No problem!

the problem here is that the kid was not properly trained. the 8 year olds in africa seem to already have a handle of an AK 47 they are not shooting themselves in the head. the parents of this child should be held responsible for being so stupid

It's too bad that the people there forgot that they shouldn't let an 8 year old play with a fucking UZI.

Fucking idiots.

In a previous job, I did a day's training with live weapons with the marines on a shooting range. The gun's had quite a kick to them and there's no way I'd be happy handing one to a child, assuming they'd be capable of controlling it. What a tragedy that sadly could have been avoided.

I wonder if the death of this "child" could have been avoided?

WTF. what is an 8 year old doing at a gun fair

there are no more words...Big men-little men loving to have a big X%$#

when my son was 8, I almost croaked when a friend that he visited occasionally across the street, accidentally killed himself looking at his Dad's gun. My husband was a Policeman and my other son admitted he searched out the (unloaded) gun just "to feel what it was like to hold it". Its a MALE gene...wtf can we do??? My boys started playing war when they were little in spite of our restrictions on TV, ETC. Its like they were genetically programmed.....