A 9-year-old girl from New Jersey accidentally shot and killed her shooting instructor, Charles Vacca. Vacca was teaching the girl how to use an Uzi submachine gun. In a video provided by the police, it showed that the girl is taking one shot for the first time. Vacca then reset the gun for repeated shots. That's when the girl loses control of the gun as it goes to recoil. Vacca was rushed to the hospital. He died Monday night in a hospital in Las Vegas and the girl was traumatized, to say the least.
The girl was on vacation with her parents. It was her parents who took the video. They eventually turned it over to the police. No charges are going to be filed against the gun range or against the girl.
What is Gun Range Tour?
The "gun range" tour is one of the major tourist attractions in Arizona. It's included on the four-hour tour package that cost around $200 per head. The tour will start at Hover Dam and it will bring tourist to the popular gun range known as the Last Stop. Tourist can choose the weapon that they want to fire - automatic machine guns, sniper rifles, and grenade launchers.
As the news spreads over the Internet, a lot of people are not reacting well to the accident. Many are "puzzled" as to why did the girl's parents allowed their child to shoot a gun.
Sam Scarmardo, owner of Last stop, said that he had been in the business for 14 years and there had never been any accident. He also said that he is now considering changing the practice of letting children hold firearms in the range. Scarmardo said, "We lost a friend - basically, we lost a brother. We are all very close. We are a tightknit organization and community."
In Arizona, it is legal for children to fire guns at a shooting range.
