A Texas county commissioner will spend one year on probation for accidentally shooting his grandson during a Nebraska wedding he was officiating.
Michael Gardner, 63, of Odessa, Texas, was sentenced Monday for misdemeanor child abuse in the September 2023 shooting. His grandson, then 12, survived the shoulder wound.
“It’s something I’ll have to deal with for the rest of my life,” said Gardner, who was recently reelected as a county commissioner in Ector County in Texas.
The shooting happened when Gardner pulled out a revolver, intending to fire a blank round into the air to signal the start of the outdoor ceremony near the small town of Denton in southeastern Nebraska. But as he was cocking the gun’s hammer, it fired, hitting the now 13-year-old boy.
No fucking reason to shoot a live gun into the air. This alone should be charged as reckless endangerment.
On the one hand, firing a blank in the air is harmless. On the other hand, how fucking close was he that the kid was as injured as he was from the blank?
It was a homemade blank, using hot glue to “hold it all together”. I’m guessing the poor kid got a plug of hot glue in his shoulder.
Also no fucking reason to even have a weapon at a wedding ceremony.
Especially not for participants.
(Maybe a security guard might need to be armed, but even then what kind of a place are you holding the wedding at that it would be needed??)
Eh it’s part of the culture, especially if it’s a blank
Idk if a blank would be considered a live gun but I do agree with you.
At close range, a blank can kill.
Still not considered a live round.
Agreed
Well based on the fact that he shot his grandson, it doesn’t seem to have been a blank after all.
Yes, that is also true, and imo he should have gotten a far more harsh punishment. Not only did he almost kill someone he undoubtedly gave at the bare minimum the child life long ptsd.