Fines for unsafe gun practices suggested

St. Tammany Parish District 12 Councilman Gary Cooper on Wednesday vowed to increase fines for those who shoot guns near homes after a Covington man was shot but survived a stray bullet hit last weekend.

The question is, can he? It’s not likely.

It would take a rally cry and bill from state lawmakers and a signature from Gov. Bobby Jindal to increase St. Tammany penalties, currently billed as a $500 fine and 30 days in jail for violators who shoot guns between 200 or 1,000 feet from an inhabited dwelling

But even then, because of state law, lawmakers could only increase penalties to match those in nearby municipalities that can offer a maximum 60 days in jail and a $1,000 fine, parish attorney Neil Hall said. Municipalities can’t approve ordinances that penalize violators more than penalties under state law, Hall said.

“It doesn’t make sense that in Slidell (or any other municipality) you can have one penalty and then go across the street into parish territory and have another,” he said. “The Legislature needs to take a hard look at it and give us the maximum authority.”

Police, however, do have the option of charging anyone caught shooting within a certain range of a home with illegal use of a dangerous weapon, a felony that carries a $1,000 fine and up to two years in jail with or without hard labor. The state law would typically trump the parish ordinance, Hall said.

Still, Cooper said from a local standpoint, the parish’s ordinance is not tough enough. He called the shooting of 68-year-old Ronald Richard at his Lee Road home a tragedy and vowed, at the very least, to put pressure on gun enthusiasts and hunters from shooting in the residential area surrounded by woods.

“Whatever we can do we’ve got to stop it somehow, if it’s more fines or stricter regulations” Cooper. “There’s no amount of money that is worth a life.”

Richard, mowing the lawn at his home near Covington, was hit Saturday afternoon in the chest with a .45-caliber stray bullet.

He survived, but only by an odd chance of luck.

The bullet struck his chest and happened to hit a cell phone in his front pocket.

The impact changed the bullet’s trajectory and stopped it. Richard was left with nothing but a bruise and a scare.

On Wednesday morning, Cooper said he patrolled the area along Lee Road and North Fitzmorris Road where Richard said hunters are often seen parking and walking down a cut through bulldozed for power lines. It’s less than quarter mile from Richard’s home, he said.

Cooper found no signs posted that warn against illegal firing of weapons that, according to parish ordinance, can instill penalties for shooting 200 yards to 1,000 yards, depending on the area, Hall said.

“We are going to get these signs posted,” Cooper said.

He also vowed to pass a council-supported resolution urging the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to patrol the area.

“Once the word gets out how heavily we’re patrolling the area, hopefully people will get the message,” he said.

Richard agrees. He opted to speak out about the incident in hopes of saving a life.

“Something needs to be done,” he said. “I could be dead.”