North Carolina residents might have heard about the fatal accident that occurred at an Arizona shooting range a couple years ago. In August 2014, a 9-year-old girl accidentally shot a gun instructor who was teaching her how to use a mini Uzi 9mm. Now, the family of the 39-year-old deceased gun instructor is saying that the girl should have never been allowed to operate the gun in the first place.
The family of the deceased man filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the gun range that employed the instructor. An attorney representing the family said that the gun range’s policy of allowing children to operate machine guns was fundamentally unsafe. In addition to the wrongful death lawsuit, the family has been petitioning to stop gun ranges from giving assault weapons to anyone under the age of 15.
Before the fatal gun range accident happened, the gun instructor was helping the 9-year-old girl to shoot at targets. The weapon recoiled when the girl fired a round, and a stray bullet struck the gun instructor in his head. He was flown to a hospital for treatment but died there later on. The family’s attorney says that the deceased man’s family does not blame the girl for what happened, and they consider her a victim in the incident.
When someone dies because of another’s negligence, the deceased’s family members can file a wrongful death claim against the at-fault party. An attorney may be able to help the family of a deceased accident victim determine who was at fault for their loved one’s death and file a claim for compensation.
Source: ABC News, “Family of Gun Instructor Slain by 9-Yr-Old Firing Uzi Files Wrongful Death Suit,” Sabina Ghebremedhin, Aug. 26, 2016