A two-year-old boy accidentally shot and killed a woman after he reached into her purse at a northern Idaho Walmart and her concealed gun fired, authorities said Tuesday.
The woman was shopping with several children, and it is unclear how they are related, Kootenai County sheriff’s spokesman Stu Miller said. Authorities originally said the boy was the woman’s son.
The woman, whose identity was not released, had a concealed weapons permit.
Miller said the shooting was accidental and occurred in the Walmart in Hayden, Idaho, a town about 40 miles northeast of Spokane, Washington.
First off a woman who carries a concealed weapon while out with a bunch of children deserves to be shot. I know that sounds insensitive but since one of the alternatives is that a child is shot, I stand by my statement.
Secondly have you ever noticed just how many people are shot in Wal-Mart these days?
And thirdly this is just another example of having guns on your person placing you and your loved ones in more, not less, danger.
I feel badly for this two year old child, and the other children who were there to witness this.
But once again I am finding it impossible to feel badly for this woman.
OT
ReplyDelete"What was Bristol Palin saying again?
Wrong, wrong, wrong. And she would know it if she bothered to read more than Fox News headlines. She’s either purposely lying or she’s blissfully ignorant and unwilling to admit the reality of the situation.
State officials (and church/state separation groups) aren’t against Christians. All we want is for them to play by the same rules as everybody else.
But playing fair is what Palin calls “pushing Christians around.”
I can’t imagine where she gets it from…"
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/friendlyatheist/2014/12/30/bristol-palin-wrongly-claims-the-noahs-ark-theme-park-was-denied-millions-in-tax-credits-for-being-too-religious/
3:03 I think I'll go with blissfully ignorant. I don't know if she's even smart enough to form a good lie on her own.
DeleteShe's just repeats shit she hears. A palin research? Anything? Yea, that's funny.
Bristles has no thoughts of her own, especially on "her" blog. Nancy French playing the part of a poor, misguided, teen Mom once more. There so-called Christians are laughable.
DeleteNancy French knows that Bristol doesn't have thoughts aside from things like Lumbersexuals.
DeleteIs anyone safe in the Valley?
“we never win anything!”
http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2014/12/possible-reason-for-concern-apparently.html
CARRY CONCEALED
https://austinisafecker.files.wordpress.com/2014/07/rednecks.jpg
The article posted is from The Guardian, a high quality UK newspaper. This is the sort of news that makes the civilized world wonder what in the hell is wrong with the US.
ReplyDeleteThis insanity will not stop until the good old "christian" USA begins losing billions from tourists who refuse to board a plane into this gun-loving, people-hating nation. THEN and only then will the people with clout join with us in saying enough is enough.
DeleteI was behind a woman at our local large store (not Walmart..I refuse to set foot in there) who was buying a gun. I didn't even know they SOLD guns. She was perturbed because the purchase triggered an ID check, and there was not a clerk right there to authorize her buying a weapon. Poor dear. I moved to another line.
This is sick, and has to stop. Fox News should be banned for turning us into the third world nation. And I agree, Gryph..I have trouble feeling anything near sympathy for these crackpots, who are getting what they deserve. And if God is all-knowing and as in charge as they think He is, well, then, He may be making a statement to these kooks as well.
Yesterday, that news story was the most popular story on the BBC website. For those of us outside of the US, stories like this are incredible. "Accidents" like this don't happen in our own country ; they are unique to the USA.
DeleteHayden, ID is the white supremacist capital.
ReplyDeleteheh..
DeleteDarwin's theory at work.
Imagine if one of the kids had found the gun while they were driving? They could have ALL been killed. This was a shooting just waiting to happen. Keeping a gun in her purse around small kids, knowing how curious they are? I agree with you that it is fortunate none of the kids, or other shoppers were killed by this stupid woman's desire to "keep herself safe"
ReplyDeleteAccording to The Spokesman-Review, the victim was a nuclear research scientist and was employed by Idaho National Laboratory.
ReplyDeleteThe mother-of-one was visiting family with her husband Colt, who she married in 2009, and was spending the day with her son and nieces, according to the newspaper.
This says a lot about Idaho National Laboratory and their low hiring standards.
DeleteWhat high school would have a valedictorian like that woman?
The entire family must be sadists if they are alright with taking all those children out to a place like Wal-mart.
That's meant to be an excuse? With those qualifications she should have been even more aware of how bloody stupid here actions were.
DeleteThe woman was a scientist.
ReplyDeleteAll this says to me is that people in this country who are armed have absolutely no idea how to secure a handgun. Devastating loss for her family and horrific circumstances for her poor little boy ----who will go through his life as the kid who shot his mother to death in a Wal-Mart.
Veronica Rutledge, 29, valedictorian of her high school class, a nuclear scientist at Idaho National Laboratory, arrived at a nearby Wal-Mart in Hayden with her three nieces and son, her gun “zippered closed” inside her new purse, her father-in-law said. Then, in the back of the store, near the electronics section, the purse was left unattended for a moment.
ReplyDelete“An inquisitive 2-year-old boy reached into the purse, unzipped the compartment, found the gun and shot his mother in the head.
Read more at : http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/12/31/the-inside-story-of-how-an-idaho-toddler-shot-his-mom-at-wal-mart/
Whew, that made me feel better. She's a nuclear scientist whose kid has mastered the dexterity it takes to open a zipper and shoot a gun. We all know the last thing that went through her mind- her own bullet.
DeleteAll the papers are calling this an "accident". It was not accidental, in that the lady was carrying a loaded gun to which a toddler had direct access. There was nothing accidental about it. The toddler was doing what toddlers do - being curious. How sad that this apparently brilliant nuclear scientist didn't have the forethought to figure this out and NOT put a gun in direct access to her child, or for that matter not.carry.a.loaded.gun.in.her.purse. That child's life is ruined forever, not to mention his siblings, their father, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and all the people at the Walmart who had to witness this killing. Duh, these crazy gun people.
ReplyDeleteIt was not accidental... There was nothing accidental about it.
DeleteI couldn't agree more. The locals are trying to cover for bad parenting and the alleged scientist (her degree may be like that of Idaho's Sarah Palins).
The child never had a chance. He is still in the same family and will grow up in a community of dumb and dangerous crazies.
That two year old child had been watching everything his mother and father did.
DeleteProbably watched mom and dad handling guns, maybe even watched them shooting guns. Possibly saw other children shooting guns.
Watched his mom unwrap her new purse on Christmas, maybe even saw the magic gun put in the purse...
What could go wrong?
This woman probably went to places like the local post office, grocery store, gas station. People with guns waiting for an accident are everywhere YOU or I go, not just Walmart. The child killed the gun owner, but could have just as easily killed YOU or me.
ReplyDeleteThe NRA's solution is that a "good guy with a gun" will kill the toddler before YOU or I get gunned down by toddler.
Thank goodness it was not another shopper who was killed. These gun enthusists who are not smart enough to secure their weapons usually cause the deaths of others, not themselves. This is being perfectly BLUNT. Maybe WalMart needs to install metal detectors at each entrance, or face a loss in revenue from customers afraid to shop there in case of being killed while picking up a few groceries.
ReplyDeleteYes. I am glad it was this poorly educated nuclear scientist that is dead instead of someone else.
DeleteI guess anyone can get certificates, diplomas or degrees, like the Palins. It means nothing. The dead so-called scientist may have been as stupid as a Palin with faked diplomas.
Walmart greeters will now hand out Kevlar vests if asked. Thank you and please put your life at risk while making the Walton family rich. Ain't that 'Merica.
ReplyDeleteVest manufacturers are going to have to offer Kevlar helmets as well. The toddler's unerring aim hit his mother in the head.
DeleteIf a parent was really safety conscious they would dress appropriately when shopping or being out in these danger zones.
DeleteIt must become standard dress for the entire family to wear proper helmets, vests and protect any part of the body you don't want yourself or your children shot up. That should include infants and newborns properly swaddled.
Responsible shops and public places must have rules for proper safety attire. Cities and states need to legislate safety dress codes. Like you must wear a hard hat in some construction zones.
Now shops, restaurants, theatres and all places where people can have design gun conceal bags MUST have proper safety dress codes. Violators must be fined, also, too.
As a commenter above said, this was not an accident, It was gross negligence, recklessness, and irresponsibility. I have trouble right now feeling sorry for her because the dead person could so easily have been an innocent bystander.
ReplyDeleteLive by the gun, die by the gun. This time, it actually the person choosing to live with a gun who died by the gun. That was the only accident here.
I have a graduate degree and coordinate the graduate program in a large department at a well-regarded mid-western university.
ReplyDeleteBelieve me, being a scientist, highly intelligent, or highly educated has not one damn thing to do with having a lick of common sense.
The perfectly appropriate approach in any field of research to encourage people to dream and wonder what if? also encourages every non-research related eccentricity in that person's cranium to blossom forth with no one to tell them they are being a goober.
Actually, you'd think encouraging someone to explore alternate futures would cause them to be extremely cautious about potentially dangerous situations.
DeleteIt's what usually saves a defensive driver, for instance, from putting themselves in a situation that elicits road rage from another driver.
And, if they must concealed-carry, makes them remember to set the safety ON their gun concealed in purse or coat pocket.
Someone could start up a business that would shop for people so they would not need to go out to the areas where they feel they need a concealed weapon.
DeleteMothers and fathers would be able to keep their children where they are safe and have items delivered. Or they could hire a baby sitter and go shopping where they think they need a concealed weapon without putting the child in a dangerous environment like Walmart.
Don't be surprised if the RWNJs and the tin foil hat brigade denies that this actually happened. They'll state that this is another stunt by the Obama administration to persuade the public to submit to increased gun control and the eventual seizure of firearms from all citizens. There are people who actually believe that no one died at Sandy Hook because it was staged for that very purpose. smh...
ReplyDeleteSheesh
Bang bang he shot me down.
ReplyDeleteBang bang I hit the ground.
Bang bang that awful sound.
Bang bang my baby shot me down.
They don't write them like that anymore.
DeleteI'm really curious to know her reason for needing to carry a loaded gun in her purse while out shopping with kids.
ReplyDeleteFear, paranoia, ignorance and don't give a damn about others or toddler are the most obvious reasons. This fool would be in denial if she had lived to make up some crap about being Amurikan, freedumbs etc.
DeleteHayden Lake Idaho don'tcha know.
DeleteOkay, sort of playing devil's advocate...she was a nuclear scientist, so it's possible she knew or had access to confidential information that she thought might make her a target. My dad had a pretty high security clearance and worked for a defense contractor during the Cold War, and he and his colleagues all operated with extreme caution--I won't call it paranoia, because it wasn't unjustified--because they were working on technology the Soviets would have liked to access.
DeleteThis did not make my dad walk around with a loaded gun, but IF this woman's work inculcated a similar mindset of caution, and IF she fit the rugged individualist/survivalist Idaho stereotype, it might explain why she did.
11:30 AM
DeleteOkay. Let's say she knew she was a target.
Therefore the family was alright with her taking all those kids out in public with a target because she had a concealed weapon in a safety bag.
Is that what targets do? Place their family and kids in harms way?
The Target Gabby Giffords
Deletehttp://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/01/06/article-0-0ECD98F900000578-728_634x423.jpg
Collateral damage
http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/130410114701-christina-taylor-green-horizontal-gallery.jpg
Victims
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GAlwIFGdaDI/UOlSb5lG7vI/AAAAAAAAD1M/9lCD1kC1kcE/s1600/2011+Tucson+shooting+1.jpg
"Anonymous11:30 AM
DeleteOkay, sort of playing devil's advocate...she was a nuclear scientist, so it's possible she knew or had access to confidential information that she thought might make her a target."
---------------------------------------
According to the article, she and her husband just plain liked guns, they liked playing with them, shooting them, never went anywhere without them, etc.
There was no indication that her job posed any sort of security issue.
Nefer2:28 PM
DeleteWhat happened is proof they liked guns. They like guns more than their child's well being or life itself.
They were not stupid people and they knew the risks. They had their priorities. They also believed in the alleged safety nonsense they believed.
I bet the grandfather and father will stand up for Veronica and would do the same thing as she did.
They like guns. They don't want to see their shortcomings or admit Veronica was not a responsible parent.
I thought it was bad when my 2 year old (now almost 15) unzipped 2 zippers in my purse and pulled a tampon and waved it around.
ReplyDeleteOne less idiot with a gun.
ReplyDeleteAgree. Dumb as a bag of hammers.
DeleteShe was a nuclear scientist, who had gotten 'a specially designed for concealed carry purposes' purse from her husband for Christmas.
ReplyDeleteSo, a purse with a zipper inside is good enough for keeping a fully loaded - and unlocked - gun safe. UHUHMMM!!!
Darwin wins.
What happens to a loaded gun in a locked purse that drops. Could that cause the gun to go off?
DeleteWhat happens if a Bad Guy recognizes the special bags and figures there is a concealed weapon. Bad Guy or Guys want to commit some crimes so the steal the recognizable bags and disarm the fear ridden mothers in places like Walmart?
These people may be educated but they don't think things out so well and this incident and the dead woman body shows the world that gun safety doesn't work.
She should have had more parenting classes. Or reconsidered where she would shop with her toddler. A good parent would take a child to a safer place.
Oh why, oh WHY was there no good guy with a gun?
ReplyDeleteIf I were to ever go to a Wal-Mart I will be certain to look out for BAD TODDLERS. They seem to be big threat. They look so innocent and all, who would ever expect them to shoot you dead.
DeleteYa know, I've been wondering if these committed "gun worshipers" who feel the need to carry their little security blankets with them everywhere have egos the size of Montana. Are they celebrities? Politicians? Are they carrying a fortune in diamonds and gold, or large amounts of cash? Are they going to meet up with a bear in the parking lot of WalFart? Do they think there will be a duel at high noon in Tumbleweed Corners that they'll just have to take part in? Are they afraid that someone on the street will look at them and say, "That person looks wealthy/brilliant/beautiful; I must destroy them?" What do they think would happen if they DID encounter an incident where they'd actually have to aim and fire? Chances are they'd be shaking like a leaf. If you're going into a really rough neighborhood at night, that's one thing, but to carry Momma's Little Helper as an "accessory", especially with kids around, is verging on psychosis.
ReplyDeletePicture of a similar bag.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2892697/Mother-shot-dead-2-year-old-son-freak-Walmart-accident-carrying-gun-specially-adapted-purse-bought-husband-Christmas-gift-better-conceal-weapon.html
Her father-in-law sounds real broken up about it:
ReplyDeleteRutledge isn’t just sad — he’s angry. Not at his grandson. Nor at his dead daughter-in-law, “who didn’t have a malicious fiber in her body,” he said. He’s angry at the observers already using the accident as an excuse to grandstand on gun rights.
“They are painting Veronica as irresponsible, and that is not the case,” he said. “… I brought my son up around guns, and he has extensive experience shooting it. And Veronica had had hand gun classes; they’re both licensed to carry, and this wasn’t just some purse she had thrown her gun into.”
Rutledge thinks because his family is educated and trained for gun safety it is alright to shop in stores that are dangerous enough for them to believe they need a gun.
DeleteWho was Veronica protecting herself against at Walmart?
The only person that was dangerous was the nuclear scientist, gun licensed Veronica and a curious toddler.
What a pathetic man. He is angry, not at his stupid self or his stupid family. He is angry at observers.
DeleteHe doesn't even care about his own grandson. He can't face Veronica the irresponsible fear driven fool who wasn't malicious, just a gun safety nut case of a failure.
Rutledge is sad and angry because he doesn't care about people or humanity. He cares about politics and he is going to grandstand on guns because he doesn't like it if he thinks anyone else is doing it.
Sounds like he's more worried about losing the guns than losing Veronica.
DeleteHey, pappy, it's it ok, since you love guns so much, that you bury all yours in Veronica's new digs, you know, to comfort her and protect her for eternity. What a beautiful tribute it would make!
DeleteIf Walmart and that area is so scary and dangerous, why isn't the community addressing those issues?
ReplyDeleteWhat if a mother with 3 young toddlers needs to go shopping there, she can handle all the toddlers and a gun in a specially designed handbag?
If a nuclear scientist failed how can all the uneducated mothers be expected to handle gun safety and toddlers?
What about mothers with a toddler and a new born and a gun in a specially designed handbag?
Fathers could be in a similar situation especially single fathers. Are they better at handling toddlers and a gun in a specially designed handbag because they are male?
The community where this happened is too busy trying to make the dead mother innocent of careless stupidity and bad parenting that they won't address any real issues.
Obviously the alleged gun safety of this community is a tragic joke and they just need to bury the dead victims and stop trying to cover up their failures.
Their gun safety doesn't work.
And what good is the gun if it's in a zippered compartment in her purse in the shopping cart ? If she's away from the cart looking at something on a shelf, and some nut walks by and grabs the purse out of the cart, that gun is useless to her anyway.
DeleteI wonder if she was allowed to take her gun to work with her? She worked in a science lab of some sort. And if she wasn’t allowed to take her gun, what did she do with it? Leave a loaded gun in her car?
ReplyDeleteFor everyone who is asking how a responsible mom could concealed-carry around her kids, I want to share this.
ReplyDeleteI have a relative, one of the best moms I know, who ALWAYS concealed-carries around her young kids. She is married to a cop who has received numerous death threats from local drug dealers. They've told him they know where he lives and are targeting not just him but his family. They live on a street with several other cops and have big dogs, but when she's out with the kids, she feels more vulnerable. So she always has the gun in her purse.
I have no idea what this Idaho woman's situation was. But I'm curious what some of you would do in my relative's situation? (I don't know what I would do, honestly--I am not comfortable around guns.)
So a sniper takes her and her kids out.
DeleteShe lives in a fantasy world if she thinks concealed-carry is protecting her family.
Does she really think if druggies want to do a job they are going to do it in such a way that a concealed-carry would survive.
They people who threaten her know that she has concealed-carry and it is not going to stop them from killing her is that is what they decide to do.
As it is now she is just a sucker that is being manipulated by bullies. Her fantasy is not only putting her children at risk from druggies, like Veronica she could have her own children kill her, her children strangers or all of them.
These fear ridden idiots don't know how to protect themselves or their families and they are a danger to all society.
No one is more important and vital to American gun culture, NRA lovers and patriots than Track Palin's hero.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.classicalite.com/articles/13827/20141228/shameless-jake-mcdorman-talks-american-sniper-chris-kyle-film-bradley.htm
If Sarah Palin is able she will be advertising and praising Chris Kyle as she always does and telling the story about Track and Chris.
It appears that Track is impervious because he remains silent and has his mommy talk for him.
Palin can't miss a beat about her fellow Idaho and nuclear research scientist, not so gun safe and now the dead Veronica Rutledge.
Both Bristol and Sarah care about children, so they say, the damaged for life two year old toddler also deserves their attention.
Why would they neglect the boy? They care so much.
Everyone wants to hear what Nancy, Bristol and Sarah have to say. Everyone at CONS4PALIN and young virgin mothers that is.
It's going to be fun for that child when someone asks where his mother is : "Oh I shot her dead in the supermarket." Nice.
ReplyDeleteLolz, this is too funny. A nuclear scientist shot dead by her tot, while shopping at a Walmart... in Idaho! lol Keep 'em coming, gun nutters and fear mongers.
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to see how LaPierre and the NRA will try to spin this one to make it a positive example of 'responsible gun ownership'.
ReplyDeleteAdd to list of reasons NOT to shop at Walmart.
ReplyDeleteI'm just thankful she didn't have one of those red "easy" buttons, being a nuclear scientist and all.