Man Buys Handgun at Gun Show, Immediately Shoots His Friend


A man at a Phoenix, Arizona gun show accidentally shot his friend while inspecting his newly purchased semi-automatic handgun. The single round struck the man in the torso. He was taken to a hospital and is expected to survive.

This presents a problem for the Crossroads of the West gun show, a traveling event that prohibits guests and retailers from bringing ammunition. They make it pretty clear, too. Its website says: “No loaded firearms and no loaded magazines are permitted in any Crossroads gun show,” while a sign posted near the entrance reads “NO LOADED GUNS IN THE SHOW.”

Police are now investigating the incident, and examining Crossroads’ security measures.

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The Crossroads of the West gun show prohibits guests from bringing ammunition. Police are trying to find out how live rounds were taken in anyway.

America is a hotbed of debate about the role guns should play in society. The pro-gun crowd insists they’re necessary for self-defense, and generally believe that disarming the public amounts to a breach of their constitutional liberty. Proponents of new gun laws cite recent mass shootings, which appear to be on the rise, as well as cases of accidental injury or death involving firearms.

At the heart of the debate are so-called “gun show loopholes,” which allow some people the ability to purchase firearms without undergoing the formality of a waiting period. Opponents of these laws tend to say that gun shows are disturbingly lax with their security checks and balances.

Now, it seems this accident may provide more fuel for the fire. One thing is clear: change is coming to American gun culture. What that change is and how the country will enact it remain unknown.


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Timothy Bertrand
Writer and journalist living in the Houston, Texas area. Follow me for breaking news, editorials, pictures of cats doing human activities, and other such content from around the web.

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