Four people injured by celebratory gunfire on July Fourth in Kansas City, police say
At least four people were injured by celebratory gunfire on July Fourth in Kansas City, according to police.
The Kansas City Police Department, which has for years warned of the dangerous trend of people firing guns into the air on some holidays, on Wednesday gave an account of the reported injuries and damage from this Independence Day.
Among the reports: One person was shot in the chest. Another was struck in the head. Homes and a vehicle were damaged.
ShotSpotter, a gunshot detection system in the city, recorded 31 alerts of gunfire in the 36 hours surrounding the holiday on Tuesday. There were 193 rounds fired in that period, according to police.
The police department manually reviews the incidents to see if they could be related to celebratory gunfire.
On Monday, ahead of the holiday, police canvassed neighborhoods where gunfire was recorded in previous years to inform residents of the dangers.
While the celebratory gunfire seems harmless to some, the bullets that fly up eventually come back down at around the same speed as when they’re fired.
In 2018, police said at least one or two people were injured every year by celebratory gunfire on July 4.
“Do not shoot your gun randomly into the air to celebrate,” Police Chief Stacy Graves said at a June news conference. “At some point, someone is going to get hurt or killed again. If you see someone’s about to shoot into the air, tell them to stop.”
This year, police reported that at least one person was critically injured about 8:45 p.m. Tuesday while they were hanging out in a backyard in the 2300 block of East Meyer Boulevard and they were struck in the chest by a bullet fired from an unknown location.
Another person reported hearing fireworks and gunshots around 7:25 p.m. in the 8700 block of North Pomona Avenue before realizing a person had been shot in the leg. Police said their injuries were not life-threatening.
Two men fired guns in the air around 10:30 p.m. in the 4200 block of Flora Avenue, and a round struck a person in the head. The gunfire broke skin, but the person refused treatment, police said.
One person was also struck in the shoulder by gunfire around 11 p.m. while in their backyard in the 5100 block of Indiana Avenue with family. They were taken to the hospital, but police didn’t know the status of their injuries.
Celebratory gunfire damaged at least two homes and one vehicle Tuesday night, police said.
The act of celebratory gunfire is a misdemeanor that can be punished with a year in jail or up to a $1,000 fine.
Police said Blair’s Law, named after an 11-year-old killed by celebratory gunfire in 2011, is expected to go into effect in August. The law would escalate the crime to a state offense with harsher penalties.
