HURRICANE – Officers responded to a Hurricane residence Wednesday afternoon after a homeowner called 911 reporting that a shot had been fired into the home, landing in the room the homeowner was in. (See ed. note)
Officers were dispatched to the 100 West block of 200 South just after 4 p.m. in response to a report of a bullet entering a home, Hurricane City Police Sgt. Brandon Buell said.
During the police investigation, it was determined a slug that entered the home was fired from a shotgun that had been left unsecured at the house next door.
Two 14-year old boys were looking at the gun and one of them, thinking it wasn’t loaded, picked up the weapon and pulled the trigger, which sent a slug through the exterior wall of their home, a Hurricane City Police Department press release said.
The slug then traveled straight into the home next door, continuing through several walls until it came to a stop in the same room as the neighbor was occupying at the time.
Fortunately, the slug did not strike the neighbor, Buell said.
The teen who fired the gun was charged with discharging a firearm within city limits and reckless endangerment.
“This is a good example of how dangerous firearms are and the importance of ensuring that weapons are unloaded and kept in a safe manner,” the press release stated. “We are very lucky that no one was injured in this incident.”
This report is based on preliminary information provided by responders on scene and may not contain the full scope of findings.
Ed. note: Upon further investigation, the Hurricane Police Department determined a slug was fired from the shotgun. Clarification has been made per that new information received.
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The teen was charged with discharging a firearm and reckless endangerment. The parents should be charged for being a couple of idiots.
Who keeps loaded guns in their house…?
I do. But I don’t have children. My .38 revolver is kept in my nightstand and the door to my room is shut while I have visitors at my home. I don’t trust kids or adults around my loaded firearms.
I thought shotguns shot pellets, not bullets…..??
Shotguns can also fire, in addition to pellets, a bullet, commonly referred to as a “slug” (modern journalists do not know these differences, however). Shotguns can also fire a rather lengthy list of other devices and projectiles, but we do not want to strain the brain of the aforementioned news scribes.