What was supposed to be a practical joke went horribly wrong for a 10-year-old Florida boy and ended with him in hospital after he was shot with a real gun and run over by a car.
The police report that the minor approached his father on Sunday with an unusual request for a practical joke: he wanted to do a mock drive-by shooting at a crowd using a paintball gun. Surprisingly, the father, 26-year-old Michael Williams agreed to the dangerous proposal.
Williams drove his van by a home in Opa-locka where a group of young people were gathered. As they passed, his son fired off several rounds of paintballs into the crowd through the side door.
Unfortunately, for the minor, the owner of the house, Gregory Burns, thought that his home was under attack. He quickly drew his own weapon and fired a single shot which struck and wounded the child.
After getting hit by the bullet, the boy lost his balance and was run over by the rear tires of his father’s vehicle after he fell. In the chaos, Williams got the boy, put him in the van and drove home, where the child’s mother called 911, police said.
Williams’ son was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital. No additional details on the child’s injuries or condition had been released at the time of publishing.
Williams has been charged and faces one count of child neglect with great bodily harm. According to an Opa-locka police report made public on Tuesday, the authorities are saying Williams “acted recklessly by agreeing to conduct a drive-by paintball shooting” with his son.
While Paintball guns are regarded as “imitation firearms” or “toy” guns they can only be used in controlled recreation game areas, with the right protection, authorities warn.
