One of the over 3,000 kids accidentally shot and wounded every year in America.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the little boy and his family today.

From the Arizona Daily Star:

A 11-year-old boy who was accidentally shot while playing at a friend's home was listed on Sunday in critical but stable condition.

No adults were at home when the shooting took place on Saturday, said Deputy Dawn Hanke, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman.

At about 11:45 a.m., deputies responded to a shooting at a home in the 2700 block of West Carnauba Street, near West River and North Shannon Roads, Hanke said.

According to the initial investigation, the 11-year-old boy and a 13-year-old friend, who lives in the home, were "handing the gun back and forth when the shooting occurred," Hanke said.

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Hopefully an investigation will reveal the adult who was responsible for the weapon, and how it got into those kids' hands.

For more about the dangers of kids and guns, see this report posted last week.

The NBC affiliate in San Antonio, WOAI NBC-4, conducted the type of experiment examining kids and guns that has been run in the past, and reached similar results.

Showing children an NRA Eddie Eagle video - telling them to "stop, don't touch, leave the area, and tell an adult" when they see a gun - and then trying to reinforce that with some classroom instruction, doesn't seem to work at keeping children safe.

A police officer assisted WOAI in placing a genuine (and disenabled) handgun where groups of children were observed by the kids' parents. The children had been shown the Eddie Eagle video, with instruction by the police officer, a couple of days before.

The NBC-4 report shows the results:

From the online version:

... The parents were stunned.

"I sat there and watched [the police officer] disarm that gun," said on parent. "But it was just watching [a child] extend and aim and my son's head was right there. It was just shocking!"

"I'm pretty disappointed that he didn't think it was a real gun and think to get a teacher," added another parent. "That picture will be in my mind for a very long time."

This experiment just shows the power of a child's curiosity, no matter what they know about guns.

Sgt. Fryar says that is exactly why telling children not to touch a gun is not enough. He says you have to make absolutely sure they can't get their hands on one.

How do you do that?

Sgt. Fryar says: Keep the gun unloaded and store the bullets in a separate spot. Put a gun lock on it and keep it in a gun safe, somewhere high, out of reach from little ones.

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This Montana columnist is a gun owner - no apologies, thank you very much - but he also knows what it means to be a truly "law-abiding" one.

A must-read in today's Great Falls Tribune:

In mid-June the U.S. Supreme Court decided that we have a right to own and keep guns — even handguns — in our homes. The court was 5-4 in favor of striking down a Washington, D.C. ban on that constitutionally guaranteed right. The ruling suits me.

But bewilderment quickly overshadows my relief since over the last few months here in Great Falls we have had several young people shoot and kill or wound friends:

• July 6: A Great Falls man allegedly shot a friend in the leg as the two drank cough syrup, smoked marijuana and played with firearms.

• June 22: A man allegedly shot and seriously wounded a 23-year-old friend when the two were holding a quick draw contest in an apartment. The shooter told police that he forgot his gun was loaded.

• In May, a decorated veteran of the Iraq conflict allegedly shot and killed a fellow airman while they were "joking around" at a backyard party. The dead man reportedly displayed a knife and offered to shave the shooter; the accused shooter upped the ante by drawing his handgun.

There were other incidents in the state of Montana, but you get the point.

What the heck is going on here?...

...

In Montana, as of last Friday, there were 17,036 valid concealed weapons permits in the Department of Justice system. To get one you have to pay $50 and apply for a permit. The county sheriff issues permits after conducting a background check and requesting proof of some kind of gun training. Let's hope that number represents the lawful gun toters. Who knows how many people had a clean enough record to buy a handgun but not enough common sense to get fully trained in its operation and how to use it.

It boils down to this: The highest court in the land says we have the right to carry guns and defend ourselves. It's up to us to act within the law, to avoid escalating a situation by adding the element of a weapon and finally, for the love of God, guns are not toys. Guns seldom make people laugh.

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According to KFDM CBS-6 (Beaumont), this accident happened yesterday morning.

No word today on the man's condition:

A man has been seriously injured after he was accidentally shot while cleaning his gun.

Orange County Sheriff Mike White tells KFDM News the call came in at about 9:15 a.m. Tuesday.

White says the 51 year old man was cleaning a handgun at his home off Highway 2802 and Aunt Sadie Road, when he dropped the gun and it discharged, striking him in the chest.

The man was taken by ambulance to a hospital.

The Orange County Sheriff's Office is investigating. Officers say no foul play is suspected.

Yet another illustration of why merely being a "law-abiding gun owner" isn't enough to keep people from shooting themselves or others.

According to the Modesto Bee, a member of a shooting club shot and killed a 71-year-old man after he "accidentally touched his trigger":

A 71-year-old man died Sunday morning when a member of a skeet shooting group accidentally shot him in the head at the Old Fishermen's Club of Modesto, authorities reported.

The man has been identified by the Stanislaus County coroner's office as William Herrmann of Modesto.

The club, at 10800 Maze Blvd., is about nine miles west of Modesto on the San Joaquin River.

A group of club members met Sunday to go skeet shooting, said Lt. Mario Cisneros of the Stanislaus County Sheriff's Department. The accident happened about 9:30 a.m.

"A few of them were near their vehicles," he said. "One of the gentlemen accidentally touched his trigger and discharged his weapon."

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The Cary Grove Countryside reports an incident from last Thursday, where a young man shot himself in the head at an Illinois gun range:

David M. Stierer Jr. , 25, of Cary was identified as the man who died Thursday after shooting himself in the head at a Dundee Township gun store.

The incident occurred at about 10:45 a.m. at G.A.T. Guns, 14N915 Illinois 25, Dundee Township. Stierer apparently arrived alone at the store, then shot himself in the store's 25-yard indoor firing range, according to Kane County sheriff's Lt. Pat Gengler.

Gengler said Kane County officers were certain the wound was self-inflicted but were waiting on results from the coroner's office to determine whether it was an accident or intentional.

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Just some of the weekly evidence that not having a prior criminal record - while necessary - is not sufficient to establishing safe and competent gun ownership.