KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana |Accidental shooting sparks safety concerns

Accidental shooting sparks safety concerns

By Jeff Ferrell – bio|email

SHREVEPORT, LA (KSLA) – No charges will be filed in what's being called an accidental shooting of an Ark-La-Tex teenager this week.  That's the word from the Bossier Parish Sheriff's Office.

That shooting happened Wednesday night in the 300-block of Country Forest Drive, off Highway 157.  Spokesman Ed Baswell said the victim, 15-year old Christopher White, was hit in the groin at close range from a 13-year old holding a .12-gauge shotgun.  White is listed in fair condition at LSU Hospital. 

It now appears a perfect storm of safety mistakes led to that accidental shooting.  And it happened not during squirrel hunting, as first thought, but instead during a re-enactment of a video war game among a group of young teenagers. 

Many kids do start hunting as early as 10 years of age or even younger, escorted by their parents.  But authorities now confirm there was no adult supervision when White suffered that buckshot wound to the groin.

 KSLA News 12 is told White had startled the 13-year old standing behind him, causing him to squeeze the trigger.  The image of a blast pattern from a .12-gauge shotgun shows its true power and the damage it can inflict.  Luckily, White is expected to survive this shooting. 

"I'm going to always unload my gun, no loaded guns on roads or in your vehicles, that's critical," said Leroy Beasley.  He learned as a child the safe way to handle a rifle, including not to load it until you're ready to shoot.  Then there's the safety.  Beasley continued, "I won't engage that safety until I'm ready to pull the trigger." 

Experts also suggest that young and inexperienced hunters should practice at a shooting range before going out into the woods to hunt.  That way they learn more about the weapon, along with the do's and don't's of handling a firearm.

Of course, learning about your weapon should begin at purchase.  That's why we went to Bass Pro Shops in Bossier City, where we met Beasley.

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