TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — We usually think of New Year’s Eve as a dangerous time for DUIs but there’s another threat too—when people want to make some noise in the worst way possible.
New Year’s Eve is one of those times people are driven to do dumb, irresponsible things, like ringing in the new year by cracking off some gunshots.
Johnny Borquez says, “I came home last night on New Year's Day, around one o'clock. Nice and quiet didn't really notice anything different other than maybe some debris on the floor.”
He thought maybe his dog made a mess. Then he took a closer look and realized his new year was getting off to a scary start.
“And I looked around and I noticed there was a hole. And then I looked around and said, No way. That can't be it. And then there was a bullet right next to where the hole would come.”
For some people, New Year’s fireworks are not enough. They celebrate by firing guns in the air. They either don’t know or don’t care that when the force of the gunpowder stops pushing the bullet up, gravity pulls that slug down and it regains enough energy to kill.
The Pima County Sheriff’s Department says deputies got 31 gunfire complaints last weekend.
A study from the Journal of Neurosciences in Rural Practice cites a variety of other studies on injuries from falling bullets. It says a bullet falling at 200 feet per second has enough power to punch through your skull—and falling bullets can reach three times that—600 feet per second.
It cites a study of one Los Angeles Hospital where doctors treated 118 people for falling bullet injuries in the seven years between 1985 and 1992. 38 of those victims died.
In Arizona, Shannon’s Law makes it a Class 6 Felony to fire a gun in any municipality. It’s named for 14 year old Shannon Smith. She was in her backyard in Phoenix when a bullet fired from a mile away came down and hit her in the head. There are exceptions for shooting ranges and self defense against people or animals. Anyone convicted can face more than five years in prison.
Johnny Borquez says up to five people could have been in his house when that bullet came down. Luckily no one was home.
So what would he say to whoever pulled that trigger?
“Be better. Think. It's not only about you. We need to take care of ourselves as a community, and you're not doing that right now. So you know better. Do better.”
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Craig Smith is a reporter for KGUN 9. With more than 40 years of reporting in cities like Tampa, Houston and Austin, Craig has covered more than 40 Space Shuttle launches and covered historic hurricanes like Katrina, Ivan, Andrew and Hugo. Share your story ideas and important issues with Craig by emailing craig.smith@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook and Twitter.
