JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – In an effort to keep people safe this summer, the organization USA Unlimited hosted a safety event at Mallison Park Saturday morning to focus on teaching kids and adults about gun, water and fire safety.
There are countless cases of people accidentally shooting themselves or someone else, and those unfortunate situations are not limited by age either. It could be kids or adults.
That’s why Dr. Camika Jerido and her organization USA Unlimited held its third annual event to teach gun, water, and safety.
“Secure weapons, and even if there is an adult, just make sure that you be careful when you are handling your weapons. Even if you are experienced, you still have to be careful because you never know if it would just go off,” Jerido said.
There have been several cases of accidental shootings, with two examples that stick out from our viewing area.
A little more than a year ago in the Regency neighborhood, a 16-year-old was shot in the leg after The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said he and five others between 12 and 16 years were playing with a gun and it went off.
That teenager was treated for his injury.
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Jerido encouraged people to never leave guns out and in the open unattended and to store them in a locked box container or secure them with a trigger lock.
“If you have young kids, please, please, please make sure that you secure your weapons. You secure the guns or anything that is harmful to kids,” Jerido said.
Early January of this year, the Nassau County Sheriff’s Office said Tyler Shepperd was charged with manslaughter after he was accused of accidentally shooting and killing a friend.
Deputies said Shepperd’s friend was mishandling a gun and passed it to Shepperd.
Investigators said Shepperd thought it was unloaded, and he pulled the trigger. The gun fired a shot and hit Shepperd’s friend, who died at a hospital.
“Never hold a gun by the trigger. Never hold it by the trigger. Most of the time they probably don’t even know if there’s a safety or anything. I always advise to keep it pointed down,” Jerido said.
Last year was the worst year on record for unintentional shootings by children, people younger than 18.
According to the gun safety group, Everytown, there were more than 400 cases of unintentional shootings.
Jerido said she hosts these events as a way to help stop these things from happening, which can be avoided in the first place.
“We have to stay consistent because when people have guns, they stay consistent in buying guns or whatever. For us, we are going to stay consistent and this is where we are going to be every year,” Jerido said.