STATESVILLE, N.C. — The North Carolina chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, today released the following statement in response to a reported shooting in Iredell County in which a man killed his two toddler sons before attempting to commit suicide. Sherriff’s officials responded to a call of a domestic dispute to find a three-year-old and four-year-old boy dead, and the accused shooter with a reported gunshot wound to the head. The accused killer remains in critical condition.
While details are still developing, initial reports indicate that the shooter first attempted to assault his wife before killing his children. Research shows that having a gun in a home during domestic violence assaults often has deadly consequences. According to Everytown for Gun Safety’s intensive review of 105 domestic violence homicides in Arizona, firearms were used far more frequently to murder an intimate partner than to kill an abuser in self-defense. What’s more, children were severely affected by the shootings. During the 105 incidents, perpetrators shot 13 children under 17, killing 11 of them. At least 44 other children were physically unharmed but present during the incidents.
STATEMENT FROM SARAH GREEN, A VOLUNTEER LEADER FOR THE NORTH CAROLINA CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION:
“First and foremost, our thoughts are with the families of the two boys who were killed in this horrific tragedy. It is devastating that these young lives were cut short by gun violence. This killing is yet another reminder that an average of 88 Americans are killed by gun violence every day, of which seven are children and teens. North Carolina lawmakers took a stand for gun violence prevention recently by preserving our state’s background check system against an attempted repeal. But it is clear that we must do more to prevent shootings that kill innocent children and residents across our state.”