Editor Hasso Hering
Demnocrat-Herald
Albany, New York
Some news reports on the police shooting of a teenage boy in a Brownsville, Texas, middle school were a little confused about pellet guns.
The boy, Jaime Gonzalez, was shot and killed when he refused to obey police commands to put down his weapon. Our Associated Press story this last Friday said the incident “raised questions about whether pellet guns should be marked in a way that would easily distinguish them from real handguns.”
What the boy actually had, according to an account in the New York Times, was not a pellet gun but a Umarex SA177, which is a CO2-powered, .117-caliber BB gun that looks like a Glock. It shoots steel BBs, not pellets.
Another Associated Press report, though not in our paper, said that “under federal law, pellet or BB guns must be sold with an orange band around the tip of the barrel so they can be distinguished from real weapons. But law enforcement experts say users often remove the bands, and the coloring can sometimes be hard to see. Gonzalez’s gun had no markings, according to (the police chief).”
Federal law does require that certain toy and replica guns, including air-soft guns, be equipped with a blaze orange muzzle. But the law specifically says it does not apply to guns that shoot metal projectiles such as BBs or pellets. These are usually made to resemble the firearms under whose names they are marketed. They are meant to look like firearms because that’s what the collectors want.
The most salient point, though, is this: Pellet- or BB-firing handguns powered by compressed air or carbon-dioxide cartridges are not marked as toys because toys they are not.
Many come with a warning on the box or on the barrel that says, more or less in these words: “Not a toy. Improper handling may cause serious injury or death.”
The unfortunate Texas teenager’s family, understandably, wondered why the officers shot him when he had “only a pellet gun.”
What he had was no firearm but nevertheless a real gun, and when he pointed it at them, the officers had no choice but to react.
Monday, January 23, 2012
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rita
6 comments:
Of course, the Brownsville Herald did none of this research and prefered to pull verbage out of their asses....and avoid "work" involved with real reporting. It is unfortunate for any family to lose a son....but a real family takes responsibility for monitoring their "toys". Obviously that was not the case here.
The alleged incident is a extremely negative unfortunate incident that should never happen in any part of this World called Earth. We live in the Western Hemisphere, which economically depressed causes youth to cry in a way as this alleged outburst of gun pointer avoiding orders of law enforcement. I pray for the boy and that he rests in peace, unless a hidden anger reigns in his rest, no one will know, or maybe someone knows and we, the public will never know, but will always wonder. That would be the lawyers in general fault. That is just the way that Industry works. Now, one must consider the alleged individual or individuals that actually shot. Why is a particular alleged individual that has a long history of being involved in high profile arrests that have been all over the blogs and the daily that Open Records also shows spousal unlawful abuse in the form of physical abuse along with the disturbing fact that he is a kin to an elected city official who has a history of protecting city personel who really could care less about the fool with a character that should not be teaching city youth that can be scarred for life by his wide eyed stupid lashing verbal reprimands that are an absolute turn off to all to see from such a egotistical self serving jack ass that tarnished a very valuable citizen who is premier attorney that allowed the jackass to have wedding reception for elected city official and his former wife. Tarnish City. Wake up fools (voters).
Mr. Concerned, Shrimp Lovin,Brownsville Texas Citizen
police academy 101.
What do LEFT WINGERS do "Never let a Crisis go to Waste !!!!!!!!!!!!
I feel sorry for the officers that were forced to make that decision. Some things are worse than dying and living with having to take a life under any circumstance can a bigger burden than most good men can carry. On this day there were no winners.
Good reporting ..........."........
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