State trooper's handgun unintentionally discharges during staff meeting

Lt. Shawn Currie, who heads the commercial vehicle enforcement division of the Maine State Police, was in a staff meeting when he unintentionally discharged his handgun.
According to the chief of the state police, Currie was taking a computer training class with two other officers when, "he had an ache or a pain. He put his hand on his weapon to push it away from his body. It was in his holster. The trigger wasn't exposed."
The weapon was a newer-model .45-caliber H&K handgun that is supposedly designed to prevent unintentional discharges. No one was injured in the incident.
"We don't know of any other instances where this has happened," said the chief.
The gun was taken for analysis and police will run tests to see if they can re-create the condition of the discharge to see if there is a problem with the gun.

Man unintentionally kills his brother, distraught he then kills himself

19-year-old Kody Thacker, of Somerset, Kentucky, had spent the night at a friend's house with his brother, 24-year-old Kyle. Kyle was asleep in a recliner in the living room and Kody was on a nearby couch.
At about 9:20 in the morning, Kody picked up a 12-gauge shot gun and unintentionally discharged the gun, hitting Kyle in the head, killing him instantly. Distraught over what had happened, Kody turned the gun on himself and took his life.
Neighbors say their hearts go out to the family who now has to deal with losing two loved ones in one day.

12-year-old drops gun at gun range, unintentionally shoots two people

A 12-year-old Georgia girl was with three adults at the Chestnut Mountain Shooting Range. She fired an Easter Arms double barrel shotgun and was startled by the recoil. She dropped the gun, which then unintentionally discharged.
Paul and Christina Ponziani were about 10 yeards down range from the girl. Both were struck in the lower legs by the shotgun blast.
The couple was taken to the hospital for treatment. Christina had to be admitted.
According to the local sheriff, "The recoil was so much with her not being experienced to shoot a shotgun like that, it feel from her arms when she shot it." He does not plan to file any charges in the incident but added, "it's never a good idea to mix small children and guns."

Drunk man unintentionally shot in head

An unidentified 20-year-old Texas man when to his friend's house near Mission, Texas. He told his friend he needed to borrow his gun because someone was looking for him.
The gun owner told his friend he couldn't have the gun because it was loaded and he was drunk. At which point the drunk man grabbed the gun, pulled the slide back, took the bullet out of the chamber, tossed it at the gun owner and proceeded to leave.
The gun owner jumped the man from behind and grabbed for the gun. During the struggle, the gun unintentionally discharged, striking the drunk man in the head.
He was taken to the local hospital where he is listed in critical condition.

Man puts ammunition magazine in oven, friend injured when she turned oven on

25-year-old Javarksi Sandy, of St. Petersburg, Florida, took the ammunition magazine containing four bullets out of his .45-caliber Glock handgun. He put the magazine in the oven and the handgun in a drawer.
Later that evening Sandy and his friend, 18-year-old Aalya Walker, decided to have some waffles. So Walker turned the oven on. Walker was injured when the bullets exploded, hitting her with shrapnel in her leg and chest.
Walker took the bus to the hospital where she was treated and released. Sandy, who has a concealed weapons permit, was not charged in the incident.
Bullets can explode at temperatures as low as 280 degrees. The tv show MythBusters recreated this very situation in 2007. They found that while the bullets exploded in an oven, "without a gun barrel to contain and direct the propellant gases, the bullets did not develop enough speed" to be fatal and that "the shell casing actually caused more damage than the bullets." However, they found that a loaded gun put in an oven "automatically discharged and sent the bullet out of the oven, which could potentially kill anybody who happened to be standing in front of the oven."

Woman unintentionally shoots herself inside Detroit's Motor City casino

A 29-year-old woman unintentionally shot herself in the leg early Tuesday morning inside the Motor City casino in Detroit, Michigan.
Reports are sketchy but indicate that the unidentified woman had a gun in her purse that unintentionally discharged shooting her in the leg. She was taken to the hospital where she is listed in stable condition.
One witness told reporters, "People started running and the guard told us to move out of the way, to go to the back of the casino because somebody was in there shooting."
A spokesperson for the casino said the woman had a concealed weapons permit but added that it is still illegal for someone to bring a gun into the casino.
Police are still investigating the incident.

Man showing teenager how to handle a gun unintentionally shoots him. Teen may be paralyzed.

16-year-old Roy Weichers, of Millville, California, and a friend were at the house of 44-year-old Danny Gray. Gray was showing the teens how to handle and fire his Glock .40 caliber semi-automatic handgun. According to news reports they were "practicing shooting techniques."
The police report that during a break "one of the teens there loaded the gun and they continued showing the shooting practice."
Gray was showing Roy how to fire the gun. He didn't realize the weapon was loaded and unintentionally shot Roy.
Roy is in the hospital in serious, but stable, condition. Doctors tried to remove the bullet in surgery but discovered it was wedged in Roy's spine. They were able to remove the bullet in a follow-up surgery but don't know whether or not Roy will be left paralyzed in his left leg.
"He is doing as well as can be expected," said his mother. "He will not fully recover...It will change his life forever."
Gray says he feels terrible but that this is a tragic accident.
Police are still investigating and haven't decided yet if charges will be filed.

Ohio woman caught in crossfire while walking home, dies

45-year-old Valetta Martin, of Cleveland, Ohio, was walking to her apartment when she got caught in the crossfire between two men shooting at each other. Valetta, who had celebrated her birthday the day before, was shot in the chest. She was taken to the local hospital where she was pronounced dead.
According to a neighbor, "I never looked out the window, I just took cover. It lasted for about 15 minutes. You hear shots around here all the time." Another neighbor said she heard gunshots about 10:40 and looked out the window and saw Valetta lying on the ground.
Valetta was the mother of five chilren. She also had four grandchildren. "Lala loved church, children, talking and laughing," said her sister.
Relatives said they were planning a surprise birthday party for Valetta but are now planning her funeral.

Woman shot in both legs after dropped handgun discharges

A Colorado Springs, CO woman was getting into the passenger seat of her boyfriend's car when she knocked a handgun off the seat. When the loaded gun hit the floor it unintentionally discharged, shooting the woman.
The bullet passed through both of her calves. She was taken to the hospital for treatment and is expected to recover.
No one was charged in the shooting, but her boyfriend was taken into custody on an unrelated warrant.

Man unintentionally shoots and kills girlfriend's 3-year-old son

21-year-old Nicholas Barbee, of Paducah, Kentucky, bought a gun for protection in response to an increase in break-ins in his neighborhood. Saturday afternoon he was taking the gun from a cabinet when he unintentionally discharged the firearm, shooting 3-year-old Braydion Matlock.
Braydion was shot in the head. He was airlifted to the medical center in Nashville, Tennessee, but died Saturday night.
Barbee, who is Braydion's mother's boyfriend, admitted to police that he unintentional shot the boy. He has been charged with manslaughter.
According to Braydion's obituary, his favorite movie was "Cars" and he enjoyed baseball and basketball.