Arizona Shooting of Gun Instructor By 9-Year-Old Triggers Debate

The accidental, fatal shooting of gun instructor by a 9-year-old girl has triggered a debate on gun usage.

The incident raised concerns over parents allowing their children to fire weapons and the kinds of safety regulations shooting ranges must establish. According to Sam Scarmardo, the manager of the Last Stop shooting range where the death occurred, children of ages eight or above are allowed to shoot an Uzi.

"We instruct kids as young as five in .22 rifles," Hills told the BBC.

Gerry Hills, the founder of Arizonans for Gun Safety questioned the standards shooting ranges follow.

"We have better safety standards for who gets to ride a roller coaster at an amusement park. I just don't see any reason in the world why you would allow a 9-year-old to put her hands on an Uzi," Hills told the Associated Press.

But safety expert Ronald Scott believes it was the deceased shooting instructor's mistake in teaching the girl to fire the high-powered weapon.

"You can't give a 9-year-old an Uzi and expect her to control it," Scott said.

The young girl, whose identity has not been released, was vacationing with her parents in Arizona when they visited a shooting range located at the Last Stop tourist recreational complex in White Hills. Charles Vacca, the 39-year-old gun instructor, stood next to the girl and told her to go "full auto" at the outdoor shooting range at the time of the accident. The recoil of the gun tugged the weapon upward, shooting Vacca in the head. He was airlifted to University Medical Center in Las Vegas, where he was declared dead.

The Wall Street Journal reports Arizona Republic columnist E.J. Montini wrote in his column that children and guns are a recipe for disaster despite minors being allowed to possess firearms in Arizona.

"It's time we asked ourselves: Why would a shooting range allow a kid to handle an automatic weapon? Why would a parent? And, most importantly, why would a state?" he said.

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