More Killed by Toddlers Than Terrorists in U.S.

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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.

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.

J.J. Goldberg is editor emeritus of the Forward, where he served as editor in chief for seven years (2000-2007).

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspectives in Opinion. To contact Opinion authors, email opinion@forward.com.

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