http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2013...marketing-kids

4 year old shoots sister with kids rifle, yes indeed a rifle specially for kids, a real one.

The mindset there is something I will never comprehend. How could putting a firearm in the hands of a child and this happening ever be described as just "one of those accidents"?

It's not something unique to the US: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Dor...507/story.html

but that is leading to charges (charges both for the weapon and the death), as CanadaJimmy says, the incident that bats posted about is just met with "one of those accidents" by family, coroner and police. No one being held to account, no sense that oversight is a responsibility of adults. (it would be if this death occurred from any other way than a gun)

Absolutely the fault of the parents - any rifle (kids or not) should be locked up and out of the way, and the parents should be supervising whoever it was that was using it beforehand and presumably left it laying around loaded.

Er why does a 4 year old need a rifle that can kill? We were at friends shooting our bows and arrows and I was more than bit alarmed at the 6 year old being allowed to shoot. He was all over the shop. Not only do they not have the coordination but there's no real concept of pain and the damage they can cause.

A 4 year old doesn't need a rifle, I didn't read the story so was maybe incorrectly assuming that the rifle belonged to an older sibling. If it did indeed belong to that child then thats just pure stupid in a can, I totally agree with you regarding the age thing.

I think here kids are allowed to hunt at 12 as long as they have passed their firearms course. My hubbys son (9) has his own air rifle but isn't allowed to shoot at anything other than targets under the very close (as in stood next to at all times) by his dad. He believes that 3 years of teaching prior to him taking his course should give him some semblance of knowledge where guns are concerned.

4 years old is just retarded.

It was a 5 year old, but that is neither here nor there.
The rifle was bought for the child as a gift. It is from a company that markets guns to children starting at 4 1/2 years old. They have pink ones for girls.

Because he was 12 rather than 4, I'm guessing. I remember a case in the UK where someone had a handgun illegally and their son found it in the bedside table and shot themselves accidentally with it, he was prosecuted for illegal possession obviously but it happens everywhere.

But yes, people should keep their guns unloaded and in a secure location, unfortunately there are a lot of stupid people about. In that case in Québec the father apparently had a handgun illegally, left it in the house when his wife chucked him out and then the kid found it. But they're prosecuting the child, not the father.

From the news report.

It all seems perfectly legal and "normal" unlike the other prohibited weapon cases.

And that is what is so wrong.

Then again we have the 12 year old in Dorval, just near Montreal, who is presently being charged for shooting his 16 year old brother in the head

It's not illegal for a 4 year old to be in possession of a chainsaw. But would you, as a responsible parent, allow your kids anywhere near one?

Most 4 year olds shouldn't even be allowed near a blunt spoon

I thought the only rifles built for 4 year old shot water or nerf darts?

Shocking. And to leave the kids 'playing' with it? Just as shocking is the fact the mother isn't being prosecuted. Poor kid now has to grow up with the knowledge of what he did.