Boy 10 shoots father at shooting range

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sdchuck1

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http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/13405855/detail.html?dl=headlineclick

RAMONA, Calif. -- A 10-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed his father over the Memorial Day weekend, according to the San Diego Sheriff's Department.The shooting happened Sunday afternoon at the Orosco Ridge Shooting Area, an outdoor range in Ramona, officials said.

The father, 46-year-old Michael Lee Lowery, of San Marcos, was taken to Palomar Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

The family issued a statement saying that Lowery was killed when a gun that his son was holding accidentally went off.

The Lowerys declined to speak on camera, but said in their statement the incident was "a tragic accident and you can imagine our family is in extreme shock. We are distraught and grief-stricken."

NBC 7/39 spoke with one father and son Monday who went to the firing range one day after the fatal shooting.

Charles Tillman said he and his 11-year-old son have been shooting guns for more than four years.

"It is tragic that a child took the life of his father, and that's something that he's going to have to live with forever."

Tillman said the first lesson he ever gave his son was on gun safety. He said he told his son to always assume a gun is loaded and to hold it "like it could kill."

I can not even begin to imagine the grief and hardships that this boy will have to live with. My heart goes out to the family and mainly to the boy. BTW me and my son are the ones featured in the video. When I was being interviewed I tried to talk more about how this was a tragic accident but should not be treated any different than any other accident where a life is taken just because a firearm is involved. I also offered to let the news guy shoot any of our guns and he said he no. Also the rap music is not coming from our group its is a truck full of guys behind us.
 
Very tragic...I definately feel terrible for that boy as well. I don't know what I'd do if I killed my dad.:(

Thats why reciting the 4 rules is so important.
 
I live in SD and heard about this. This is one of my favorite gun ranges and hope they do not do something rash and shut it down. Any idea to what exactly happened?

my thoughts go to the family.
 
My daughter has the four rules so strongly ingrained that she get's on my case for pointing guns that are field stripped and completely non-functional while cleaning. (My philosophy is that a disassembled gun is not a gun, its parts. Some might disagree.) She's fantastic the range and I trust her handling completely.
 
How tragic :(

...should not be treated any different than any other accident where a life is taken just because a firearm is involved.
Click to expand...

I agree but as long as the media continues to print crap like this:
...was killed when a gun that his son was holding accidentally went off.
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people will continue to think guns have a mind of their own and are inherently evil.
The 4 rules are there for a reason!
 
Crap

Fingers crossed.

Grabbers love this kind of thing.

Dad messed up. Yes, I understand that kids do stuff, but dad messed up.

If I have a ten-year-old at the range, I'm watching him when he's shooting, loading, or handling the weapon at all.

Yeah, the kid is gonna suffer for this, but for those of us who teach kids, take note: you have got to watch them.

As details of the story emerge, I'm guessing we will find that dad extended more trust than was appropriate.

All emotion aside: if you train someone in safety and he can still have this accident, you didn't train him enough, didn't test and verify enough.

This is especially true of kids.
 
Scurtis,

That's awesome--it sounds like you're doing a great job educating your daughter. I've only recently started with my six-year-old, and I'm still hammering the four rules into him.

The part that jumps out at me, though, is that this eleven-year-old has been shooting with his father for four years. My first reaction to the headline was that the father was negligent, but that fact changes the story. It sounds to me like the boy was so well-disciplined normally, that the father let down his guard. That's dangerous. As TonyF likes to say at pafoa.org, "Raise your hand if you haven't had a negligent discharge yet."

My deepest sympathies to the family--and especially the son. Growing up with an accident like that burned into your memory is tragic.

--Len.
 
Gun fired accidentialy

The news hasn't told the story of what exactly happened but my only guess would have to be a problem with the gun or a hang fire that caused the boy to turn around and point the gun in an unsafe direction. I have noticed that most unsafe situations occur for somewhat inexperienced shooters when the gun appears to run out of bullets or stove pipes ect and they dont know what to do. My son has been taught to stay where he is and get my attention so I can come to the gun not have the gun come to us. Same rule applies to any new shooters in our groups. Also my friends son was loading my mossy while the camera man was filming and I guess it got him alittle nervous as I noticed he was trying his hardest to put the shells in backwards with the follower down slide half raked.
 
The part that jumps out at me, though, is that this eleven-year-old has been shooting with his father for four years.
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Michael Lee Lowery was the man killed by his 10-year-old son. The article did not say how long the boy had been shooting.

Charles Tillman and his eleven-year-old son have been shooting for 4 years. The article did not say what his connection with the shooting was.
 
Charles is me

I had no connection with the shooting. Me and a friend took our sons out to shoot that day and the news came all the way up the hill the following day to get some footage and wanted an interview because we had kids with us. My son is well aware of the (5) rules, California has a junior rule about never touching a found gun and to leave it and get an adult. We are at odds over that rule because if he is not alone I would prefer he stays and makes sure no one else finds the gun and hurts themselves or another child, but I he knows not to hang around if someone is set on messing with it even after he informs them of the danger.
 
I have the utmost sympathy for the family and the boy, so please don't take this the wrong way.

But why do the guns always "go off by accident" in these stories? I find it very difficult to believe that the statement that it "went off by accident" is a wholly true and accurate account.
 
Just like Airplane crashes

...

Yes, first and foremost, my sincere condolences go out to the family, and especially the young boy. I'm sure, as someone said, probably a FTF, and unthinking, the boy turned to his dad for help, and it then fired, as opposed to going by one, of many safety rules, to have kept the gun/rifle pointing down range for min of 2 mins, meanwhile, seeking help, verbally.

This happened to me not long ago at my range, when my wife's Sig P232 380 jammed/stove-piped, and seeing a round still in the chamber, along with the next round half in, half out the extractor area, I held it pointing downrange, turned around and asked for help. A very nice man, with his son, came over and asked what the problem was, which I showed him, and he quickly got a screwdriver and got the unspent round out, allowing me to then remove the mag, and then he got the spent shell out of the chamber as well.

It was my first experience with a failure to feed, and expel a round, but the application of the safety books procedure in such a case, worked as designed, with every-one's safety in check, but my fear-factor did get lit, anyway, during the whole event.


Again, my deepest regrets to the family and the son, who will learn forever, just like how it's learned in every Airplane crash, what needs to be fixed, or applied, in the same event if, and when, it does or will, occur again.


LS :(
 
3 years later

On a random whim I searched to see what was out on the internet regarding my husband's death. Thank you to most all of you who offered your sympathy condolences. We as a family are doing well. The first year was rough for all of us but harsh as it may sound life has to go on and I'm not going to let this tragedy ruin my son's life. Thanks to great trauma counseling my son is doing really good- honor student and pretty much like any other 13 y/o teenage boy. He still has moments of immense grief, but as most of you stated, he was the child and the responsibility of safety was ultimately my husband's. Yes we have regrets and lots of "if only's" but we can only hope that others learn from our pain.
 
sanmarcosmom...
So sorry for your family's loss. Will continue to lift you all up in prayer...glad counseling is helping... Way to hang in there.
Tac
 
This is the first I've come across this story. I'm very sorry for your loss, but I'm glad things are back on track for you and your family.

Blessings to you and yours.
 
sanmarcosmom said:
On a random whim I searched to see what was out on the internet regarding my husband's death. Thank you to most all of you who offered your sympathy condolences. We as a family are doing well. The first year was rough for all of us but harsh as it may sound life has to go on and I'm not going to let this tragedy ruin my son's life. Thanks to great trauma counseling my son is doing really good- honor student and pretty much like any other 13 y/o teenage boy. He still has moments of immense grief, but as most of you stated, he was the child and the responsibility of safety was ultimately my husband's. Yes we have regrets and lots of "if only's" but we can only hope that others learn from our pain.
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Nice to hear that your son is doing well 3 years after the tragic event. God speed.
 
sanmarcosmom,

I didn't see this thread when it first appeared. I'm sorry to learn of your family's tragedy, but it's good to know you and your son are doing well. Thank you for letting us know, and please feel welcome here always,

lpl
 
I have the utmost sympathy for the family and the boy, so please don't take this the wrong way.

But why do the guns always "go off by accident" in these stories? I find it very difficult to believe that the statement that it "went off by accident" is a wholly true and accurate account.
Click to expand...


Unless you can prove that the boy knowingly pulled the trigger and shot his father... it's safe to say it was an accident. The term "accident" doesn't mean that the gun fired itself. If you knock your beer over onto your favorite couch and did not mean to do it well then that is an accident as well. Inexperience with a firearm is all that is.
 
sanmarcosmom,

God bless you and your boy. I won't pretend to know what your family has gone through, but I'm comforted to hear about your boy's progress. I can assure you that your story will produce fruit in the things I teach my family.
 
I am very sad that this happened.

Note that Orosco Ridge is NOT a shooting range. It's a small area of National Forest land where shooting is allowed. Other NF land in the county does not allow target shooting. Orosco isn't set up all that well for a large number of shooters, due to the terrain and layout of the place.
 
Sanmarcosmom:

I am so sorry to read about your family's loss. It is good to know that your son is coping. As the father of a ten year old boy and seven year old girl, I know that I am completely responsible when I am teaching them to shoot. At these ages, any mistakes that they make are not really theirs, but are mine and mine alone. It seems like that is what you are teaching your son and it is absolutely true.
 
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