Image by Getty Images

J.J. Goldberg May 5, 2013

Startling fact:

Number of persons killed on American soil so far this year by terrorists: 3.

Number of persons killed on American soil so far this year by toddlers: 5.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

Note that three of the toddler killings occurred on the same day, April 9, six days before the Boston Marathon bombing.

The most recent took place last Tuesday, April 30, when a 5-year-old in Cumberland County, Kentucky, killed his 2-year-old sister Caroline with a child-size .22 caliber “My First Rifle” his parents had given him as a gift. These deadly toys are manufactured by Crickett Firearms, which reportedly has taken down its website since the shooting.

Strangely enough, it took me several hours to track down this list. If there’s a national registry of this shocking type of shooting, I can’t find it:

2/11/13: 4-year-old Joshua Johnson shoots, kills self, Shelby County, TN.

4/9/13: 4-year-old shoots, kills 6-year-old friend Brandon Holt, Toms River, NJ.

4/9/13: 3-year-old shoots, kills self, South Carolina (no further details).

4/9/13: Josephine Fanning, 48, shot & killed by her 4-year-old son, Wilson County, TN.

4/30/13: 2-year-old Caroline Sparks killed by her 5-year-old brother with his kid-size “first gun,” Cumberland County, KY.

And these three non-fatal shootings:

3/13/13: 3-year-old shoots self in head, survives, Manchester, NY.

4/7/13: 2-year-old shoots mother Re’kia Kidd, 22, not fatal, Carroll County TN.

4/24/13: 3-year-old shoots 10-month-old sister in car, not fatal, Canyon County ID.

Hat tip to Facebook friend Jonathan Freund for putting me on this trail.

The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$90 $180

$360

Other amount