Entry #6, April 21 2016

Police: 4-year-old girl fatally shot by 5-year-old sibling

CBS/AP April 17, 2016, 12:08 AM

Overview:

In this article, a four year old girl was fatally shot in her home by her five year old sibling. This tragedy occurred on the 17th of April at about 2:30pm in Philadelphia. The young girl was fatally shot in the face and was pronounce dead at the scene. The gun is owned by the boyfriend of the children's mother and police are trying to investigate who was in the house during this time, and the mothers' boyfriend supposedly fled the house the day of the shooting and is now being questioned by police at headquarters. The little girl was very well liked in her neighborhood by other, she loved to help others and was apparently extremely intelligent. She could recite the entire alphabet and new all her colours by the age of 4. Later on, the boyfriend started to confess that it was his fault for the shooting and that he was the one who pulled the trigger. This would result in a sentence for third degree murder against the boyfriend and could force him to spend life in prison if the sentence was set.

Philadelphia police gather at the scene of a shooting that left a four-year-old girl dead on Saturday, April 16, 2016

http://6abc.com/news/police-5-year-old-sibling-shot-killed-sister-4-inside-kensington-home-/1294831/

Opinion: 

The issue that this article clearly brings up is the problem of gun control. Many people nowadays in the United Sates are getting their gun license so that they can poses a firearm with them or in their house. Researchers say that the primary reason that people keep them in their houses is for defense against robberies in places that robberies have occurred or could occur. So this pretty much counts as almost everywhere. Keeping a firearm simply for self defense in homes could have advantages if you live in a rough area but to what extent? If there is a chance that your child could get hurt with a mean that is supposed to defend the people in the household, maybe the weapon should be second guessed. If your children's lives could be at stake weather it's a sibling or even the man in the house who is threatening then something needs to change. From a civic point of view, and a Canadian point of view where possessing a gun is against the law, if a gun is in the house with children near, the weapon should be locked away safely. Most people in Canada who have a hunting license are required to keep their guns in locked lockers at all times. This idea could similarly be used for tragic situations like this one to be prevented from happening. To keep in consideration, the desire for american citizens to have guns a law that could be set in place or even simply an idea to increase safety around children, could be to keep your firearms in a safe and secluded spot.