9-Year-Old Girl Shoots Her Shooting Instructor At Firing Range

A 9-year-old girl shoots her shooting instructor by mistake in Dolan Springs, Arizona, while practicing at an outdoor firing range. News 10 reports that the accidental shooting happened around 10 am Monday.

The unidentified shooting instructor is 39 years old and was shot in the head by the girl. According to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office, the girl’s parents were at the range when the incident unfolded at the 20600 block of North Highway 93. Her identity hasn’t been released. The victim was airlifted to a hospital in the Las Vegas area. His condition at this time isn’t known.

Mohave County deputies said the girl was at the range with her parents when she fired the gun when she shouldn’t have. The shot hit the 39-year-old instructor in the head.

Little else is known at this reporting about the shooting. It’s unknown if the girl misfired or what when she struck her firearms instructor with a bullet.

Back in May, ABC News explored the safety of kids and guns when it came to teaching youngsters how to operate the weapons. The report centered on a group of girls in Austin between the ages 6 and 11 who attended training sessions at local firing range. They donned goggles, wore ear protection, and were taught how to aim and shoot. The sponsored program was designed to interest young people in firearms, something the gun industry is eager to encourage.

The report stated:

“The National Rifle Association and other gun industry-sponsored organizations pour tens of millions of dollars into youth shooting programs nationwide. Nearly four million youths attended a training program that followed the NRA’s guidelines in 2012, up two million from 2008, the NRA said.”

The girl in ABC’s story was also a 9-year-old. She represents a large demographic in the $30 billion gun business. Sellers consider youth “vital to the future of gun sports.”

As the report goes on to reveal, there are 310 million guns in the U.S. After the Newtown massacre in December 2012, sales dramatically rose due to people stockpiling weapons in case the tragedy were to change gun laws. Several attempts were made to do just that, but they were ultimately rejected.

Other stories involving boys and girls in accidental shootings are on The Inquisitr. While none of them revolve around a child shooting an instructor, they’re in different types of situations. Take, for instance, the one in which a 5-year-old girl mistakenly shot a 3-year-old. Her mother was in the house at the time of incident.

[Image via Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries]