Last week, Michael Payless, 33, sat watching television in his home with two of his children. Then, in a split second, he was dead from the bullet of a gun. Behind the trigger -- his 3-year-old son.
According to police, the boy found a loaded handgun lying nearby, and picked it up, and accidentally discharged it. His father was pronounced dead at the scene.
The story is so heartbreaking on so many levels. For the children who lost their father, and for their mother who lost her husband and will now be faced to raise her children alone. But mostly I ache for this 3-year-old boy. How do you live your life knowing that you shot your own father?
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Sure, he'll be told it was an accident, that it wasn't his fault. But will he ever truly be able to accept that and move on? I hope so. I hope he -- and his entire family -- get the kind of support and counseling they need to deal with such a tragedy.
Perhaps most heartbreaking of all, however, is how easily all of this could have been avoided -- if only a loaded gun hadn't been lying around. There are few details, and it's not clear whose gun it was or why it was in the home, but I can't think of any explanation that would justify it.
Nothing can undo this tragedy now, but others can learn from it. I'm not someone who seeks to ban guns, but with the right to bear arms comes the incredible responsibility to treat them with the utmost care, and never ever put them anywhere a child could potentially get a hold of them. Ever.
Do you have guns in your home? What measures do you take to keep them from your children?
Image via Westside Shooter/Flickr
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Comments 90
Thank God one of the kids didn't die. The father killed himself; he made the (grossly) negligent mistake of leaving a loaded gun out with two small children in the house. Not smart.
No guns in this house. It is sad but if you are dumb enough too leave a loaded gun out perhaps it's your destiny to be shot.
How can you say he killed himself? There is a huge difference in putting a gun to your head and pulling the trigger and what happened here. Yes he made a mistake, he may have just worked a twelve hour shift and was tired, he could have put the gun in the same place everyday and the child just now was able to get a hold of it. There is no way this man actually wanted this to happen. My best friend committed suicide in 2006 and he wanted his life over. He hung the rope, he tied the knot, HE wanted it over. to say this man killed himself is an overreaction and I am disappointed that people still lack compassion for people, Instead of judging him for his mistake and saying he took his own life, why not worry about the kids who now have no father and the mother who now has no husband.
Its sad what happened in this story. I have multiple guns in my home. 3 children under the age of 4. Guns are kept in a safe place and out of reach...but at the same token..all of my children will be tought gun safety, how to handle it, and the consequences of using it. At 3 years old I think this boy is not quite capable of knowing what he did, he will definitely live with the trauma which is sad.
The gun debate is a heated topic for most people..especially those who don't like them. You'll find people on both sides. I think leaving it loaded and in reach of a child was a mistake and something that was easily avoidable. But at the same token I'm not one of those parent who can't say the word gun without spelling it G-U-N in front of my child.
How sad. The parents was at fault here but the family will live with this. Never keep a loaded gun exposed. I grew up with weapons and brought my kids up with weapons safely.
I keep a 9mm in my house and just recently had "the gun talk" with my daughter. Obviously I keep it in a safe place, out of her reach. I hate hearing these stories of guns just "laying around". I dont want to say this man deserved what he got, but my goodness... Would you leave an open bottle of perscriptions laying around? No! You're just asking for tragedy when you do these thing.... I feel bad for the family.
Autumn Scott
He was responsible for this, so was the mother if she knew a weapon was in the house. NEVER have a loaded weapon where children have access. Being tired, overworked, placing a gun where kids can reach are not acceptable reasons. End result, he died because a loaded gun was placed where someone untrained could reach and fire it. So easy reach and no safety on or no trigger lock can result in death. Some things you don't get a second chance. Some things you can never take a risk on.
I believe this man killed himself also. Anyone with an ounce of sense wouldn't leave a loaded gun ANYWHERE. It's not the little boys fault that's for sure and thank god it wasn't another child or himself that got shot. I have some sympathy for this dad but......what a dumbass! I have a lot more sympathy for the boy. He'll be okay with the right parenting.
We have a lot of guns. They are all unloaded and locked with trigger locks AND are in a locked gun safe. We collect them and target shoot only with them unless we have to shoot a critter in the middle of the night. We've also all had classes and have permits to carry but don't ever carry them. It's just more learning for us so we took the class.