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    • Tennessee among worst states for unintentional child shootings
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    Tennessee among worst states for unintentional child shootings

    Umito Posted on

    For seven years, Julvonnia McDowell’s family did not put up a Christmas tree after her son JaJuan was fatally shot by a family member in a 2016 unintentional shooting in Savannah, Georgia.

    Milestones like birthdays and holidays became a reminder of what could have been for the McDowell family.

    “We planned to sit front row at our son’s high school and college graduation. We planned to walk down the aisle to sit front row at our son’s wedding. We planned to shed tears welcoming our grandchildren. We never planned to be seated in the front row at our 14-year-old son’s funeral,” McDowell said. Her life changed forever after April 7, 2016, the day her boy died.

    She is not alone.

    Unintentional shootings are increasing in Nashville and across the United States. These shootings have become the leading cause of child deaths in the United States, said Kelsey Gastineau, a pediatrician at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.

    On September 14, 8-year-old Phillip’e Woodard was fatally shot when he, his 10-year-old brother and a 16-year-old family friend were left alone in his grandmother’s house on North 2nd Street, Metro Nashville Police said.

    The little boy was playing with a loaded shotgun, investigators said.

    His death was the third accidental shooting death of a child in Nashville in 2024. The city had just experienced its second eight days before Phillip’e fatally shot himself.

    A 15-year-old shot himself in the neck on September 6 while playing with a gun in an apartment on British Woods Drive.

    In both cases the weapons were easily within reach.

    The gun that killed McDowell’s son in Georgia was kept in a drawer under a T-shirt, and was not stored securely, she said. Gastineau, the pediatrician, said safe gun storage could have saved the boy’s life and the lives of Nashville’s children.

    McDowell hopes his loss can spark change.

    It’s a defender of BeSmarta national adult campaign that provides gun owners with education on gun safety in homes and vehicles.

    And while the pain of losing her son is still very real, McDowell said her family began putting up a Christmas tree last December to honor JaJuan’s favorite holiday.

    “JaJuan was a kid full of life and love, and he had a contagious laugh,” McDowell said. “His presence would light up a room.”

    JaJaun was always the first in the family to wake up every Christmas morning. He had set his alarm to make sure he was first, McDowell said, noting that he sang songs and celebrated the holidays with a big smile on his face.

    The family tree honors and celebrates JaJaun, with images and drawings he created.

    “Even though he’s not physically here, we carry his spirit with us every day,” McDowell said.

    Gastineau hears similar stories in Tennessee, she said, highlighting the devastating impact on families.

    Worrying trend for Tennessee

    Gastineau said Tennessee ranks among the worst states in the country for gun-related deaths among children.

    In Tennessee, there were 13 deaths in 2020 among minors ages 0 to 17. That number climbed in 2021 to 19 before dropping to 17 in 2022, the latest figure released by the state.

    Tennessee Department of Health spokesman Bill Christian said reporting data for 2023 will be available in December.

    How Tennessee Compares

    Continuing data collection, Gun Violence Archive — a Washington, D.C., nonprofit organization — compiled annual data after its creation in 2013 with a mission to better inform the public about gun violence.

    GVA reported nine deaths from unintentional shootings through October 7 and 14 others injured in Tennessee. The organization reported that 133 children have died in the United States as a result of unintentional shootings so far in 2024. There have been 254 injured this year.

    In Tennessee, three shootings have been reported in Memphis this year, two in Nashville and one each in Antioch, Clarksville and the eastern Tennessee towns of Dayton and Rockwood.

    Tennessee has ranked in the top 10 for unintentional gun deaths every year since 2021, the GVA reports.

    And 2021 was a particularly violent year with 19 unintentional shooting deaths in Tennessee, placing Tennessee second in the nation behind Texas, which had 27 deaths.

    As of 2021, GVA data reveals that only Texas, with 89, and Florida, with 55, record more unintentional deaths of children, ages 0 to 17, than Tennessee, which has 48.

    GVA reported that 35 of the deaths in Tennessee were among children ages 0 to 11, one fewer than the 36 reported in Texas and exceeding Ohio’s 26 cases and Florida’s 21.

    Texas has 30.5 million people, Florida 22.6 million and Ohio 11.7 million. All three states eclipse Tennessee’s most recent population estimate of 7.1 million.

    But for Gastineau, the numbers don’t matter.

    All deaths are preventable, she says.

    A call for secure storage

    While many have advocated for gun reform after the Nashville Covenant School shooting in March 2023, Gastineau said the best evidence for preventing unintentional shootings is safe storage.

    Like McDowell, Gastineau is a champion and spokesperson for BeSmart.

    “When families can lock up their firearms, store them unloaded and separate them from ammunition, the risk of unintentional shootings goes down significantly, I’m talking 85% unintentional injuries,” she said, noting that 4.6 millions of children live in homes. with unsecured firearms in the United States.

    “Children learn by exploring their environment. They are curious by nature,” Gastineau said. “But it also means that while they learn by exploring their environment, they take risks in their environment.”

    A moment of curiosity can lead to a lifetime of tragedy, Gastineau said. She also added that gun ownership is increasing.

    Most gun owners, approximately 70 to 80 percent, own guns for hunting purposes. This has shifted to purchasing firearms for personal protection.

    And states that have weaker gun laws tend to have higher gun death rates, Gastineau said. She said laws such as secure storage laws could save lives.

    “This is really going to require an all-hands-on-deck approach,” she said.

    BeSmart strives to provide storage options and education.

    Storage options include cable gun locks and storage safes that feature fingerprint entry.

    If cost is an issue, Gastineau said many gun locks cost between $3 and $5. In Tennessee, Gastineau said many children’s hospitals and public health centers are giving them out for free.

    Contact reporter Craig Shoup by email at [email protected] and on X @Craig_Shoup. To support his work, purchase a digital subscription at www.tennessean.com.

    Umito
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