Hazel Green woman awarded $1.4M in court settlement after being hit by stray bullet

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - A Madison County jury award a Hazel Green woman $1,408,400 after being shot on Easter Sunday in 2018. The jury’s decision could have major implications for gun owners across the state.

Her attorneys argued that four people shooting two rifles were all equally liable, no matter who fired the actual shot that hit her.

The group had been shooting an AR-15 and an MP5 .22 rifle at a cardboard box without an adequate backstop as a barrier.

All four people admitted to investigators they been drinking at the time they were shooting. One of the bullets missed the target and ended up in the victim’s leg.

Her attorney Barnes Heyward says the jury’s decision is a warning to all gun owners.

The verdict in this case is not about gun control. The message this jury spoke was about gun safety and gun responsibility. That is something everyone can agree on that if you’re going to handle guns in this county, if you’re going to shoot guns recreationally, that we’re going to demand that you do it safely and that you don’t put other people in harm’s way.

“The jury in this case we think spoke a very clear message to the residents of Madison County which gun ownership is a right,” Heyward said. “We’re happy that it is, but if you’re going to use guns recreationally in this county, you’re going to do so responsibly and you’re going to do it with care and safety. And if you don’t there’s going to be accountability for it”

Heyward also said the jury was composed of gun owners and emphasized this was a gun safety issue, not a gun control issue.

“The verdict in this case is not about gun control. The message this jury spoke was about gun safety and gun responsibility,” he continued. “That is something everyone can agree on that if you’re going to handle guns in this county, if you’re going to shoot guns recreationally, that we’re going to demand that you do it safely and that you don’t put other people in harm’s way.

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