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A 4-year-old boy was shot and killed Sunday afternoon after he slipped undetected behind a paper target that family members and friends were using for gun practice.
The group had gathered for the long holiday weekend at a trailer on Lake Vermilion in northeastern Minnesota when the accident happened shortly before 1:45 p.m., authorities said.
There had been light rain on and off all day, but the group decided to get in a little target practice in the yard.
They didn't see the boy standing behind one of the paper targets.
The target didn't completely obscure the child, but he was wearing camouflage pants, making him difficult to see against the foliage, said Sgt. James McKenzie of the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office.
A 40-year-old man who is a friend of the family was shooting a 45-caliber handgun at the target from about 30 feet away. The bullet hit the target and then struck the 4-year-old and killed him, McKenzie said.
Speaking as someone whose family has those types of get-togethers and who used to be quasi-proficient with small arms -- this story just makes me sick. Haven't touched one in ten years, and suddenly, I'm glad.
The group had gathered for the long holiday weekend at a trailer on Lake Vermilion in northeastern Minnesota when the accident happened shortly before 1:45 p.m., authorities said.
There had been light rain on and off all day, but the group decided to get in a little target practice in the yard.
They didn't see the boy standing behind one of the paper targets.
The target didn't completely obscure the child, but he was wearing camouflage pants, making him difficult to see against the foliage, said Sgt. James McKenzie of the St. Louis County Sheriff's Office.
A 40-year-old man who is a friend of the family was shooting a 45-caliber handgun at the target from about 30 feet away. The bullet hit the target and then struck the 4-year-old and killed him, McKenzie said.
Speaking as someone whose family has those types of get-togethers and who used to be quasi-proficient with small arms -- this story just makes me sick. Haven't touched one in ten years, and suddenly, I'm glad.