Officials: 9-Year-Old Girl Who Killed Instructor Said Uzi Was Too Powerful

Mohave County Sheriff's officials released video of a 9-year-old girl at an Arizona shooting range just moments before she accidentally shot her instructor in the head.
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The 9-year-old girl who accidentally shot and killed her instructor at an Arizona gun range said the gun was too powerful for her after firing it, according to reports released by police on Tuesday and reviewed by the Associated Press.

The AP reported that the girl complained of shoulder pain after the incident and her family was so focused on her being injured from the gun’s recoil that they didn’t notice her instructor had been shot. A coworker rushed over to the shooting instructor, Charles Vacca, before the girl’s family realized what had occurred.

The Aug. 25 incident occurred after the 9-year-old fired off single rounds and then Vacca switched the gun to automatic. The gun recoiled and fired upward, striking Vacca in the head and causing the girl to drop the weapon as Vacca himself fell to the ground.

County prosecutors said the instructor was likely the most criminally negligent person because he allowed the girl to hold the gun without enough training, according to the AP. Prosecutors also said the parents and the girl weren’t criminally responsible.

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Notable Replies

  1. If the instructor would have known that he’d still be alive.

    He should have.

  2. “County prosecutors said the instructor was likely the most criminally negligent person because he allowed the girl to hold the gun without enough training, according to the AP. Prosecutors also said the parents and the girl weren’t criminally responsible.”

    So I guess justice has been served?

    How about his employer who set the policy that you had to be 8 years old?

  3. Avatar for Rmj Rmj says:

    I hope she didn’t notice much about the condition of the instructor.

    I can’t imagine it’s a picture she wants to remember.

  4. The AP reported that the girl complained of shoulder pain after the incident and her family was so focused on her being injured from the gun’s recoil that they didn’t notice her instructor had been shot.

    Selfishness drips from this story like hot fudge from a sundae.

  5. Yeah, they didn’t notice the instructor lying there with pieces of his head splattered all around?

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