[KeyLargo]

Sad story.

Few people are aware that pellet gun wounds can be fatal to people under certain circumstances and conditions.

[wita]

It doesn’t matter what kind of gun, the rules still apply. Young as well as old need to know the rules from the earliest they are able to understand.

[outofsalt]

ping to show my kids later.

[South Dakota]

Where are those people who said it was wrong to shoot that kid brandishing a pellet gun?

[Zhang Fei]

RIP. Someone just became the family leper.

[PowderMonkey]

I accidentally shot my best friend with an air rifle when I was 14 years old. The round penetrated his denim shirt, underlying cotton T-shirt, and entered his abdomen beside his navel. We had verified the rifle was unloaded prior to handling it. It was the old Crossman 760 “Giant Killer” pump model. Supposedly couldn't fire unless pumped up with air and loaded.

We started horsing around with it. He grabbed the muzzle and pulled it towards him in an attempt to take it from me. “PFFT...CRACK!” It discharged a .177 lead pellet into his abdomen. As we both stood there in shock, blood began to seep through the hole in his shirt.

Nearly a half century later, whenever old “Two-Navels” and I get together, we still wonder how an unloaded, and unprimed air rifle managed to do what it did that day. I'd say someone taught us a lesson. Air guns are not toys, and there's no such thing as an unloaded gun.

[BillGunn]

Yet somehow this guy survived!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-16663332

[Lazamataz]

What a tragedy. All devices that propel objects under force can be deadly, and they are all always loaded.

[rhoda_penmark]

Same thing happened here in Raleigh less than a year ago. Grandfather had just been “shooting squirrels”.
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/9167640/

And then elsewhere in NC shortly after. 7 year old got the gun as a “Christmas present” and let his 4 year old brother use it while shooting cans.
http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/9186324/

[fieldmarshaldj]

Sad. RIP.

[archy]

Few people are aware that pellet gun wounds can be fatal to people under certain circumstances and conditions.

Back in the days when I supplemented my minimalist pay as a newspaper photog by doubling as a coroner's photographer, I'd amuse myself in the office on rainy days by going through the old records. One I found was a downright interesting listing of gunshot fatalities by caliber, and three were listed as *17* which covers 177 cal pellets and BBS, though there are a couple of pretty neat .17 caliber rifles available now. Nosing a bit further, I found that there were also three listed for .22 pellets as well.

That was not quite one such fatality, of which four were kids, per decade. And interestingly, only one involved an eye injury.