Posted on: 4:25 pm, March 22, 2013, by Barrett Tryon, updated on: 05:32pm, March 22, 2013
MERRIAM, Kan. — It’s a case of mistaken identity that could have ended a lot differently for a Merriam, Kan., teen.
Someone called 911 Friday morning and reported three men were wearing camouflage –and armed with rifles — and jumped out of a car and began to run around a home.
When Merriam police showed up, officers were confronted by two people carrying rifles. That’s when one teen pointed the gun at an officer.
Thankfully, the officer noticed a small amount of orange paint on the barrel of the rifle and decided to tell the teen to “drop the gun.” He complied and was taken into custody.
However, when police picked up the rifle they quickly noticed it was an “Airsoft” gun — a non-lethal weapon that shoots [airsoft bb] pellets by compressed air.
The teens said they were practicing for an Airsoft game later in the day and thought the officers were another team.
No charges were filed, police said.
(Source)
A Bentonville student faces the possibility of a one-year expulsion after bringing an airsoft gun to school earlier this week, according to the Bentonville School District.
The third-grade student brought an airsoft pellet gun to Thomas Jefferson Elementary on Monday. A teacher discovered the [airsoft] gun and notified administrators, said Mary Ley, a spokeswoman for the school district.
The student was automatically expelled from school for 10 days, after which an appeals hearing will be held to determine whether a student should face the state standard of a one-year expulsion for bringing a [airsoft] gun to school, Ley said.
The incident marks the third time in the last month a Bentonville student has brought a [airsoft] gun to school, Ley said. No one was injured in any of the incidents.
An eighth-grade student at Bentonville’s Washington Junior High School brought an air soft gun to the school with the purpose of selling it to another student in February, according to the school district. A few weeks earlier, a student brought a BB gun to Mary Jones Elementary School, Ley said.
The students involved in those two incidents had their recommended expulsions overturned by Superintendent Michael Poore following an appeals hearing, Ley said.
Posted in Firearms and Ballistics on March 6, 2013 by Mike S.
As we all try to cope with the "Great Ammunition Crisis of 2013", Tactical-Officer.com will explore and share different methods to help our readers with regard to training. Today, we will take a realistic look at airsoft.
As a firearms instructor the most common question heard is "How do I improve my skills as a shooter?" The answer is often one word: “Practice". When ammunition supply was normal and prices were stable, this typically meant going to the range and sending lead downrange. Although most shooter look back on 50-round boxes of pistol ammunition for less than $10 as "the good old days", there were still plenty of shooters who found that to be expensive.
Instructors would commonly speak of the virtues of hand loading or training with 22 lr instead of the costlier center fire ammunition. Sadly, reloading components and rimfire ammunition are becoming as hard to find or almost as expensive as regular ammunition.
Last week we reviewed a great dry-firing training aid put out by Laser-Ammo, but dry firing is still only one piece of a complete training regimen.
The realities of airsoft
Being a dyed-in-the-wool shooter, I tended to look down on airsoft gear. This was mostly due to frustration when trying to find gun parts and seeing cheap knock-offs made overseas that looked too much like the real thing being sold as something they were not.
That all changed when I met the owner of an airsoft shop who was dedicated to putting real parts on his airsoft guns. While most airsoft guns at their essence are lightweight pieces of plastic that bear a superficial resemblance to real firearms, there are some that have the same weight and handling characteristics of their real counterparts.
The principles behind shooting an airsoft gun are the same as shooting a real firearm. The shooter must acquire and maintain sight alignment, obtain sight picture, breathe and follow-through. This can be accomplished by obtaining spring operated plastic guns at a discount store or by special ordering a custom piece that mirrors the shooter's sidearm in form and function.
As with regular shooting, airsoft shooting requires safety equipment. A good rule of thumb is to keep muzzle velocities under 450 feet per second for safety reasons as a fast pellet can break the skin. This time it is in the form of eye protection in case pellets should bounce back or if they are used as described in the next section.
Force-on-force training
Airsoft can be taken a step further and used in force on force training. This is being performed by tactical trainers in the military and law-enforcement realms throughout the world. However, this type of training is a bit more rigorous than plinking away in the garage with a $10 to $50 spring loaded handgun or carbine. A more rugged and robust airsoft arm is needed for this method with an entry-level price closer to a $200 for a [airsoft] handgun and $400 for a [airsoft] carbine or rifle that runs on compressed gas or is battery operated. Despite this initial investment, the long term cost of airsoft is low as [airsoft bb] pellets can be purchased in the thousands for less than a $20 bill.
Force on force training with airsoft can point out tactical errors such as exposing body parts when moving from cover or how difficult it can be to hit a moving target that is firing back at you.
While airsoft will never be a complete substitute for live firing, it does offer some advantages beyond the low cost and its use in force-on-force training. Most higher end airsoft guns have full-auto capability that may not have much of a tactical or practical use, but can be a fun way to spend a few hours on the weekend.
By Robby Korth
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER
Omaha World-Herald
A judge dismissed charges against a Bellevue East High School student Monday after prosecutors said he took an Airsoft pistol to school, causing a lockdown.
Daejawntae Goings, 16, of Bellevue had been charged with tampering with evidence, a felony, and making terroristic threats, a misdemeanor.
Assistant Sarpy County Prosecutor Stephanie Martinez said Goings made terroristic threats by brandishing the [airsoft] weapon at two girls. Prosecutors allege he then tampered with evidence after he told police he didn't know where the [airsoft] gun was but later admitted that he had “stashed” it where officers found it.
Goings' lawyer, Patrick Boylan, chief deputy public defender, said Goings never threatened anyone out loud, so he couldn't be charged with terroristic threats.
“He never threatened those two girls,” Boylan said. “How could my client be charged with terroristic threatening?”
Sarpy County Judge Robert Wester decided he couldn't, and dismissed both charges.
Prosecutors said they plan to refile charges.
According to police, Goings pulled the [airsoft] pistol out of his waistband and cocked it in front of the two girls on Feb. 6.
An Airsoft gun looks like a real pistol, but it fires non-lethal plastic [airsoft bb] pellets.
The [airsoft] gun didn't have the orange tip usually used to distinguish toy guns from real guns, and it had a red Heckler & Koch emblem on the butt of the pistol, Detective Francis Gallo said during the hearing.
The girls alerted school administrators, who called police about 2:15 p.m.
Goings first went into a bathroom and then to the high school's career center, where he told a teacher and six students that there was a school evacuation. The teacher told students to remain where they were and left to investigate. Goings was working alongside other students at a computer when police arrived, officers testified.
About 20 officers descended on Bellevue East in response to an alleged gunman.
“When I arrived, students seemed scared,” Police Officer Tim Janda said.
At first, the only gun that police could find was a green plastic squirt gun in Goings' backpack. Police found the Airsoft pistol hidden under a stack of papers in a recycling bin.
Goings said he had the [airsoft] gun because he feared for his safety, Janda said.
Sarpy County Prosecutor Lee Polikov said he still believes that brandishing a fake [airsoft] gun and causing a school lockdown is illegal. His office plans to again charge Goings. Options include filing only misdemeanor charges, filing in juvenile court or filing in district court.
“There are charges we think we can hold him accountable for,” Polikov said.
Boylan, the defense attorney, said after the hearing that Goings is relieved but knows the case probably isn't over.
“Until it's ultimately decided, he is going to concentrate on his schoolwork and his responsibilities at home,” Boylan said.
Reported by: Jeff Stone
Email: JStone@WETMTV.com
Published: 3/04 11:52 pm
Updated: 3/04 11:58 pm
WELLSVILLE, N.Y. - Police arrested an Allegany County, New York student Monday after they say he brought an airsoft gun to school.
An airsoft gun shoots plastic [airsoft bb] pellets using compressed air.
The 12-year old Wellsville Middle School student is charged with Unlawful Possession of a Weapon by a person under the age of 16.
Police say the [airsoft] weapon was never displayed in school and no students were threatened or in danger at the time.
AVON, Ohio (WKYC) -- An Ohio first grader is suspended after bringing an airsoft gun to school.
The child told Avon Police he and his cousin were threatened by another student. On Friday, the student carried it to the bus stop in his backpack, showing it to the student who threatened him.
When teachers found out, they took the [airsoft] gun and called police.
Now he could be expelled from school.
"The world, the way it is today, I can't blame them for throwing him out of school. But it's too bad," said his grandmother Mary Phillips.
Phillips says she understands why Avon Schools suspended her six-year-old grandson.
"He's never been dangerous. He's definitely not dangerous. No way," she said, of the boy.
Police say the airsoft gun was a clear, compact .45 caliber-like weapon, with a single green pellet in the magazine. The boy never used the [airsoft] gun and told others it was a toy.
Phillips says that while she knows her grandson is a good kid, the school can't take any chances.
"This is why they're taken extreme measures about it. Because there's so many kids doing these same things. You don't know what a kid is going to do," she said.
She says the boy [airsoft] got the gun from his mother's home, who didn't answer the door when our news crews stopped by.
Phillips says the boy's father has talked to him about what happened. Now he's hoping he'll be able to go back to school after a 10-day suspension.
"He feels real bad about what happened. It's too bad, you know, that he has to pay for it. Because you don't buy no kid, no six-year-old, a bb [airsoft] gun," said Phillips. "And who would have known he would take it to school?"
