Cashier at Lowe's shot when customer drops gun

22-year-old Samantha Manago is a head cashier at the Lowe's Home Improvement store in Cheyenne, Wyoming. She was working in the store last Thursday when 58-year-old Dianne Darling came in to shop.

Darling was carrying a .22 caliber pistol which fell out of it's holster and went off when it struck the floor. The bullet hit Samantha in the arm. Samantha was taken to the hospital for treatment where she was listed in good condition.

Police are continuing to investigate the incident and no charges have been filed. Wyoming does not require residents to obtain a permit before carrying a loaded, concealed gun in public. Police recommend that anyone who wants to carry a concealed weapon take a firearm safety course, but the course is not required.

Man unintentionally shot and killed hours after posting gun safety message

22-year-old Carlos Rueda, of Albuquerque, New Mexico was at a New Year's Eve party at a friend's house. Rueda and another friend, 20-year-old Ryan Wathen, were in a bedroom of the house. Wathen told police that Rueda asked him to pick up a handgun that was next to a computer in the room.

Wathen said Rueda told him not to worry, that the gun was not loaded. He said to Wathen, "don't you trust me?" and told him to point the pistol at Rueda's head and pull the trigger. Wathen did and the gun discharged, shooting Rueda in the head.

Rueda was taken to the hosptial where he died a short time later.

Rudea worked at Rio Rancho Armory gun dealer. He posted an article "Police Warn Residents Not to Shoot Guns on the Holiday" just hours before the shooting.

Wathen was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. Police are calling the shooting a case of negligence and believe alcohol played a factor.

Husband showing friends how to clean gun unintentionally shoots his wife

60-year-old General Holiefield, of Harrison Township, Michigan and several other couples had gone to the shooting range in Roseville earlier in the day.  According to police:

"They were sitting around the kitchen table and Holiefield was cleaning his gun. It's a .45 caliber Desert Eagle semi-automatic handgun. While he was sitting at the kitchen table, he was showing the other persons in attendance how to clean the gun. At one point, he was trying to clear the gun, make sure the gun was clear of all ammunition, and it in fact had a round in it. He pulled the trigger, the gun discharged and a single round went across the room and struck his wife in the abdomen. She had a through-and-through gunshot wound through her abdomen, her mid-section. The round then went through her and into the window blinds behind her."

The victim, 50-year-old Monica Morgan, was rushed to the hospital for surgery. She is in serious condition but is expected to survive.

Police are investigating the incident. The matter will go to the prosecutor's office for consideration of charges. Holiefield is currently the UAW Vice President

Man selling gun in private sale unintentionally shoots himself

35-year-old Clinton Scott, of Fort Walton Beach, Florida was selling a handgun in a private sale. He had arranged to meet the buyer in a parking lot off Racetrack Road. Scott took the gun out of the trunk of his car and placed it on the hood of the car.

When Scott picked up the gun again, he unintentionally discharged the weapon, shooting himself in the abdomen. Scott had to be taken by medical helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital for treatment.  He is listed in fair condition.

Police are still investigating the incident.  It is legal under Florida state law to meet a stranger in a parking lot and sell them a gun with no criminal background check run and no records kept. 

Stepfather unintentionally shoots and kills daughter thinking she was a burglar

29-year-old Daniel Meade, of Colorado Springs, Colorado shot his 14-year-old stepdaughter, Kiana O'Neil, about 6 a.m. as she was crawling though a window in their home. Meade thought the girl was a burglar.
Police were on the way to the home at the time of the shooting, having received a burglary in progress call. When they arrived they found Kiana with a gunshot wound.  She was taken to the hospital where she died soon afterwards.
Meade is a 10-year Army veteran who enlisted and ascended to the rank of sergeant first-class.  He is the recipient of a Bronze Star and is currently stationed at Fort Carson.
Police are still investigating and have not yet filed any charges.  Colorado has a "Make My Day" law that allows residents to use deadly force inside their homes if they believe an intruder is intent on harming them or committing a crime. 

Teen shot and killed when friend upstairs unintentionally discharges handgun

24-year-old Ryan Frederick, of Columbia, Tennessee was in his bedroom, showing off his brand new handgun when he unintentionally discharged the weapon. The bullet traveled through the floor boards and struck 19-year-old James Wisdom who was in the kitchen below.

Wisdom was struck in the head and pronounced dead about 1 a.m.

Frederick has served in the Army Reserve for seven years and has a concealed weapons permit. "It was an accident," he told press. "But it shouldn't have happened and I'm going to miss him."

Police continue to investigate but no charges have been filed in the death. "Everything from our initial investigation it appears that it was a tragic accident, " said a police spokesperson. "Our hearts and condolences go out to friends and family."

Teen hit by stray bullet paralyzed from waist down

19-year-old Dominique Romero, of Richmond, California, was sitting on the couch inside her home on Saturday night when someone fired multiple shots in the street outside. One of the bullets came through the wall of her house and hit Dominique. The bullet went through her arm and wedged in her spine.

Doctors at the Walnut Creek medical center told the teen and her family on Monday that she is paralyzed from the waist down.

Dominique's mother told press, "She didn't even cry. She's like 'I'd rather be paralyzed mom, than gone.'"

Police are still searching for the person who fired as many as nine shots that night.

Police instructor found guilty in unintentional trainee shooting case, sentenced to jail

46-year-old William Kern, an 18-year veteran of the Baltimore, Maryland police department, was sentenced to 18 months in jail with all but 60 days suspended for unintentionally shooting a recruit in the head during a training exercise in February.

Kern was found guilty of reckless endangerment in the shooting of Raymond Gray, a police trainee. Gray was critically injured in the shooting. The incident occurred at the Rosewood Center in Owings Mills, Maryland.

Kern testified at trial that he thought he was holding his simunitions training pistol that fires paintball-like cartridges when he pointed the gun at Gray and pulled the trigger. "I realized it was not my simunitions weapon immediately," he said.

Prosecutors argued that Kern broke policy by bringing his gun to the training and that he had an "unhealthy attachment" to his gun, had pulled it by mistake before the shooting and was reluctant to give it up afterward.

Gray, who was shot in the head, lost sight in one eye and was hospitalized for months before moving to a rehabilitation center.

Kern was also sentenced to two years of probation and will have to undergo psychiatric counseling.

4 out of every 10 gunshot injuries in Florida hospitals are due to unintentional shootings

Data collected by the Florida Department of Health has found that four out of every ten people who are rushed to a Florida hospital with a nonfatal gunshot injury were unintentionally shot. In Orange County, Florida that number jumps to more than half of the people treated for nonfatal gunshot injuries.

In addition to leaving injuries which can be permanent, these gunshot wounds cost more than $57 million. The average unintentional gunshot patient admitted to a hospital in Florida required $85,024 in care. Half of that was borne by government providers such as Medicare and Medicaid.

Orlando police chief blamed the high Orange County numbers on the prevalence of firearms there. "Obviously, if you have a higher rate of firearms in a state or county or city, there's going to be a higher rate of nonfatal gun accidents," he said.

He urged gun owners to be responsible, to know at all times where their weapons are and to properly secure them. He added that his officers are finding and seizing too many stolen guns.

A University of Miami pediatrician commented, "We know how to prevent this. We should be reducing access to loaded firearms."

Homeowner struck by stray bullet from shooting range awarded more than $1 million

Mike Domin was working on a backhoe in his backyard in Gargland, Texas, in 2010 when he felt something strike his back. Mike had been struck by a stray bullet. He was rushed to the hospital and spent six days in intensive care.

He sued the owner of Garland Public Shooting Range for negligence. Mike's home was about a mile away from the range, but in the direct line from the firing line.

The owner of the range, James Day, denied liability. He said the bullet probably came from people who were shooting in a landfill near by.

Police and a ballistics expert testified at the trial that they believe the bullet came from the range. Also testifying was a consultant for the local power company who told the jury there was a history of bullets leaving the range. He said he met with the range back in 2000 and again in 2002 about power lines and conductors that had been hit and about damage done by people shooting up in the air. Also, in 2012 two homes in the area were hit by bullets in a two hour span.

The jury took only a few hours to deliver its decision - they found Day and the shooting range negligent, and awarded Mike money for his pain and suffering, medical bills and anguish. He was awarded more than $1 million, including money necessary for treatment for bullet fragments which remain lodged in his chest.