On May 5, 2021, a 15-year-old boy in Burlington, North Carolina, was injured after two teenagers in the apartment next door discovered a loaded handgun in the apartment occupied by Sade Michelle Robinson and fired the gun.

The shooting was the result of “an accidental discharge and involves at least two other juveniles in an adjacent apartment,” said a Burlington Police Department news release.

Their negligent discharge of a firearm sent the 15-year-old to hospital, where he was treated and is expected to make a full recovery.

Their negligent discharge also resulted in the arrest of Sade Michelle Robinson, 34, who now faces charges of felony possession of a stolen firearm and failure to store a firearm to protect a minor.

Assistant Police Chief Brian Long said Sade Robinson is a relative of the youth accused of firing the bullet that went through the apartment wall and struck the 14-year-ld next door.

Also injured in their negligent discharge of a firearm was a can of Pepsi and a bag of Doritos. (You can’t make up this kind of reporting!)

 

Basic Firearm Safety Rules

1. Treat all firearms as if they are loaded.
2. Never point the muzzle of a firearm at anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot.
4. Be absolutely sure of your target and what is beyond it before pulling the trigger.

When you follow these simple firearms safety rules, you cannot unintentionally injure another human being. Yes, even if you’re handling a stolen handgun, as these two teenagers did in this case.

They’re lucky their negligent discharge did not kill the neighbour next door.  Unless they learn from this mistake, they may not be so lucky next time.