Jamie Gilt, an outspoken advocate for gun rights who even ran a Facebook page called Jamie Gilt for Gun Sense, dedicated to her love for guns, and featuring statements such as, "My right to protect my child with my gun trumps your fear of my gun," was shot by her 4-year-old son this week.
The 31-year-old mother was accidentally shot as she drove her pickup truck in rural Putnam County, Florida after the child somehow got his hands on a loaded .45 caliber pistol. The shot went through the back of the driver's seat and hit Gilt, though she's expected to survive and was hospitalized in stable condition, according to the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. The boy was not harmed.
The New York Daily News points out that only a day before she was shot, Gilt posted on Facebook that "Even my 4 year old gets jacked up to target shoot with the .22." Photos on her Facebook page show her holding a child in one arm and a rifle in the other as well as various other weapons.
Gilt could end up facing misdemeanor criminal charges in the shooting. There's a law in Florida that makes it a misdemeanor for a person to store or leave a loaded firearm in such a manner that it is likely a child could gain access to it. The sheriff's office said it's investigating how the toddler got the gun and where Gilt had stored it in the truck. Officials also said they're holding off on filling any criminal charges until Gilt's condition improves.
