Monday, April 17, 2023

73-year-old Utah man arrested for shooting at kids he thought were driving too fast

 A 73-year-old Ivins, Utah man was arrested and charged with felony aggravated assault and felony discharge of a firearm after alleged firing a gun at a group of teens he thought were driving too fast. The man told police that he chased the car driven by the teens because they were "driving fast and kicking up dust and rocks." 

The teens told police the man pulled up behind them when they parked their car at their house.  According to the police report "the driver of the van opened the door, ordered the juveniles onto the ground, and then shot a round into the ground. The juveniles ran into the house and the man proceeded to follow with the pistol still in his hand." 

The man was not able to get into the house and eventually left. He was stopped by police a short time later. Two guns were found in his car, including the .38 special that had just been fired. 

Utah is one of the 26 states in this country that do not require any sort of permitting process or firearms training in order to carry a gun in public. 


Friday, April 7, 2023

Student Unintentionally Shoots Himself While Walking on Campus

 A 39-year-old college student at Daytona State College in Daytona Beach, Florida is in critical condition after unintentionally shooting himself in the thigh. 

According to police, the student was running late to class when surveillance footage showed him pulling into the parking lot and hurrying towards a building. Seconds later the gun tucked into his waistband unintentionally discharged and he fell to the ground. The student was found unconscious, laying on top of a 9mm handgun. 

Police noted that while the student did have a concealed weapons permit, carrying a firearm on school grounds is illegal. 

"We don't know what his intentions were," said police. "He could have forgotten that he had it tucked in his waistband, or he could have been intentionally taking it with him to class." The student is facing charges for violating the campus firearm policy. 

Just this week Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation that would allow residents to carry a concealed loaded weapon without a permit or any firearm training.  A recent study out of Johns Hopkins University found that loosening concealed carry laws was associated with a 24% increase in the rate of assault with firearms.