Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<St. Paul boy, 3, shoots mom in knee with handgun>> Last update: March 12, 2006 – 10:45 PM When a 3-year-old St. Paul boy got his hands on a handgun that had been tucked under a couch cushion in his house Sunday afternoon, his mom took it away and removed the gun's cartridge clip. Police said the boy's mother, Lin Lin Xie, 43, then put the gun back on the couch, thinking it was unloaded. But there was still a cartridge remaining in the chamber. The boy picked up the gun a second time and it discharged. The bullet hit his mother in the knee. The incident happened about 12:30 p.m. at the family's home in the 1500 block of McLean Avenue, said police spokesman Pete Crum. The bullet "certainly did significant damage to her knee," Crum said. "It could have been much more tragic had the child shot himself or hit the woman in a more vital area." Xie suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Regions Hospital, where she was listed in fair condition Sunday evening. Neither she nor other family members wanted to talk to reporters Sunday night. No one else was home at the time. Authorities recovered about five other guns from the house, Crum said, adding that they were all legal. "There are two lessons to learn: Don't let your children play with guns. Always treat a gun as though it's loaded," he said. The case will be forwarded to the Ramsey County attorney's office for possible child-endangerment charges, Crum said. CHAO XIONG
Originally Posted By RoadTrip ^^^ Source: <a href="http://www.startribune.com/462/story/302371.html" target="_blank">http://www.startribune.com/462 /story/302371.html</a>
Originally Posted By RoadTrip If I owned a gun and lived in an area like the one she lived in, I probably would stash it in the sofa too. That's the problem I have with handguns. If you keep them locked up like you should, they will not be avilable in the unlikely event you might need it. If you don't lock it up, things like this happen.
Originally Posted By wahooskipper At least the idiot who left the gun in an unsafe place ended up being the victim. Thank goodness the child didn't shoot himself.
Originally Posted By mele <<If you keep them locked up like you should, they will not be avilable in the unlikely event you might need it. If you don't lock it up, things like this happen.>> These are the main reasons why I have never owned a gun. It's so bizarre that she put the gun back on the couch. You don't have to be an expert in childrearing to know that that kid would make a beeline towards that gun the second his mom set it back down.
Originally Posted By TomSawyer Didn't they do this in "Family Circus" one time? Didn't Billy pop a cap in his mom when she said that "Not Me" didn't really exist?
Originally Posted By cape cod joe If we did the smart thing like all the low crime countries i.e. England, Japan, etc and just outlawed guns we wouldn't be constantly worried about our kids and guns.
Originally Posted By Dirk_D_from_Oregon when my daughter was born I got rid of all handguns. I have rifles dis-assembled and out of reach. bullets/cartridges are in seperate rooms locked up. I support the right to guns. just no handguns in my house with kids. My cousin had a younger son kill his older brother while he ran inside a convenience store. The boy, 4, took the gun from the glove compartment and killed his brother. The boy has always carried this with him. My cousin drank himself to death over a period of 20 years.
Originally Posted By Dirk_D_from_Oregon when my daughter was born I got rid of all handguns. I have rifles dis-assembled and out of reach. bullets/cartridges are in seperate rooms locked up. I support the right to guns. just no handguns in my house with kids. My cousin had a younger son kill his older brother while he ran inside a convenience store. The boy, 4, took the gun from the glove compartment and killed his brother. The boy has always carried this with him. My cousin drank himself to death over a period of 20 years.
Originally Posted By Dirk_D_from_Oregon >>If we did the smart thing like all the low crime countries i.e. England, Japan, etc and just outlawed guns we wouldn't be constantly worried about our kids and guns.<< While we are banning guns, lets ban free speech too. And Gambling, drinking,smoking ect.
Originally Posted By cape cod joe Good job Dirk but I do NOT support the right to bear arms as we are not the militia.
Originally Posted By Dirk_D_from_Oregon >>I'm sorry your family has gone through such a sad trauma, Dirk.<< Thank you truly. It was something no family should ever endure. I strongly advise everybody I know to be responsible in handling guns, and especially around kids.
Originally Posted By Dirk_D_from_Oregon >>Good job Dirk but I do NOT support the right to bear arms as we are not the militia.<< Its a constitutional right. I understand your feelings. I just dont choose to keep em in my house. But bad guys will always have guns. Normal citizens need the right to protect themselves if they choose to do so.
Originally Posted By cape cod joe post 14--let's be rational here Dirk- I said ban guns so don't lose your credibility by making up things. Thanks If you really mean ban free speech, gambling, etc> that's lunatic fringe thinking. If you're being facetious, it doesn't make you look good.
