JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Two teenagers were shot in Jacksonville in incidents police are calling accidental, and legal experts say that label does not necessarily shield adults from criminal or civil liability.
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The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is investigating both shootings, including one last Saturday in the Inwood Terraces neighborhood that involved a Mandarin High School football player, authorities said. Investigators are looking at how a firearm came into a young person’s possession.
“Accidental” generally means the shooting was not intentional.
“That does not absolve any type of legal responsibility,” Millicent Daniels, Esq. of Daniels Law Firm said. “You don’t have to pull a trigger to be legally responsible for an incident that occurs if it was your firearm.”
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Florida’s Safe Storage of Firearms Act requires owners who keep a loaded firearm on their premises to take precautions if they know — or reasonably should know — a minor could access it. Under the statute, a minor is defined as 16 or younger. Owners must secure firearms in a locked box or safe, or use a trigger lock.
If those steps aren’t taken and a minor gains unsupervised access, the owner can face criminal charges in some circumstances. A misdemeanor charge is possible if a minor exhibits or possesses a firearm in a public place or handles it carelessly or in a threatening way. The law does not apply when access results from unlawful entry.
Criminal penalties can escalate if a minor uses the gun and someone is seriously injured or killed. Separate civil liability also may follow: victims or their families can sue for negligence if an owner breached a duty to secure a firearm and that breach led to injury or death.
Lawsuits can seek damages for medical bills, lost earnings and pain and suffering and, experts warn, can be financially devastating.