Boy shot dead in Sheriff's officer's home -- who will be held liable? (11/1/2001)

Josey1

Boy killed in shooting BY JACLYN O'MALLEYStaff WriterDate Posted on Wednesday, October 31, 2001 1:05:34 PMA 12-year-old boy is dead from what authorities say appears to be an accidental shooting at the home of a sheriff's deputy. Casey Gillespie died from a single gunshot wound to the head Tuesday afternoon. Authorities believe Gillespie was accidentally shot with a 22-caliber rifle in the home of Finney County Sheriff's K-9 officer Tim Shultz, where he had been playing with the deputy's two sons, 12-year-old Sean and 13-year-old Scott Shultz. The boys had the day off from school because of parent-teacher conferences at their school, Bernadine Sitts Intermediate Center. Gillespie had spent Monday night at the Shultz home. The boys had been outside shooting rifles at the Shultzes' rural home, 17 miles north of Garden City. Tim Schultz and his wife, Nora, had been home while the three were outside. The boys came inside when the Shultzes had to leave to attend parent-teacher conferences, Finney County Attorney John Wheeler said. No adults were present in the home when the shooting occurred. Wheeler said Shultz said he had disarmed the rifle before leaving. "I have been advised that the firearm believed to be involved had been unloaded by Deputy Shultz before they left," Wheeler said. Wheeler would not comment about whether Shultz owned the rifle, or if the deputy was liable for the shooting. According to Wheeler, Gillespie was sitting on the couch in the living room, watching TV. The rifle, which was on a bed in a bedroom, was discharged by one of the Shultz boys when he tried to move it, Wheeler said. The shot struck Gillespie in the head, fatally wounding him. Wheeler said there is a direct line from the bedroom to the couch where Gillespie was sitting. Shultz and his wife, Nora, who is an office deputy for the sheriff's department, were contacted at the school after Sean Shultz called 911 at 12:45 p.m. Wheeler said the couple arrived before the ambulance. "I will say, without the conclusion of any testing, it does appear that this was a tragic, accidental shooting," Wheeler said. "However, no conclusions can be made until the KBI has test results back." Shultz's residence is in the sheriff office's jurisdiction. Since the incident involves sheriff's employees, Sheriff Kevin Bascue called in the Kansas Bureau of Investigation to take over the case. "This young boy was best friends with those boys," Bascue said. "They were very tight friends. I don't think anyone is alright. They're all in shock." Gillespie was a sixth-grade student at Bernadine Sitts. Janice Stephens, public information officer for USD 457, described Gillespie as very popular in his school. She said grief counselors are available at the school for students and staff. "We're taking it one step at a time," she said. "We have a lot of grieving children on our hands." Stephens said she believes this is the first incident of this kind the school has ever had to deal with. Price & Sons Funeral Home will announce funeral arrangements for Gillespie. http://www.gctelegram.com/news/2001/October/31/story1.html