While I was doing research for the shooting that took place at an Oshkosh, Wisconsin high school, I found an interesting tidbit about the shooting that took place at Waukesha South High School on Monday. According to several news sources, the student who was shot by the school resource officer was brandishing a realistic-looking pellet gun. I even mentioned in Monday’s post that in the past, students have been killed for brandishing pellet guns in a threatening manner in schools.
In the heat of a moment like that, police can’t take the chance that the gun may not be authentic. What I don’t understand is toy and airsoft guns are required by federal law to have that bright orange ring at the end of the barrel to distinguish it from an actual gun. Why is there no equivalent law for BB and pellet guns?
According to reports, the student with the pellet gun pointed it at another student after some kind of dispute. The officer shot the student in the leg and the arm after the student allegedly refused to surrender the gun. That officer either has the best aim or the worst. As I have mentioned in the past, police are trained to aim at center mass although in real-world situations hardly nothing ever goes as planned.
If your kids have realistic-looking pellet or BB guns I recommend getting rid of them. Or at the very least they should be kept under lock and key and only used under adult supervision. Otherwise, you may have to visit your kid in the hospital before he’s hauled off to jail. Or worse, you may have to identify their body.
Real Crime with Trench Reynolds 