In my recent post I entitled Roads, I mentioned in a casual manner from time to time I still dabble in freelance article writing. I have entertained this endeavor for a multitude of years. One of my FanStory readers inquired if I would share an example of the sort of material I pen when I freelance. I decided to share this piece. Enjoy!

The case in question is the first time in the history of the United States a parent has been judged criminally responsible for a mass school shooting. The trial's outcome could well set a precedent. Good! Isn't it about time a scenario such as this one played out in a favorable manner? Perhaps that is precisely what will be required to cease this sort of insanity.

I heard it stated once "if you ride with an outlaw you die with an outlaw." Thank you Captain Gus McCrae of Lonesome Dove fame.

Taken by the Detroit News, a recent photograph showed the convicted felon Jennifer Crumbley as she walked shackled out of a Michigan courtroom with her head bowed down in a dramatic fashion. In conversations I have been involved with since this picture appeared, some responders upon observing the photograph have attempted to try and convince me the image was tragic.

Tragic? How can someone possibly call involuntary manslaughter of four deceased students, as well as six others severely injured, including a teacher, anything but the real tragedy in this situation? No sale! When I have encountered the bleeding hearts of these naysayers, I am reminded the potential 60 years in prison Jennifer Crumbley could be sentenced to is not long enough. April 9, 2024 will be the tell-tale day of her sentencing.

After all, the murdered will still be dead in sixty years, and the injured could have that long, or whatever number of years they remain alive, to cope with a lifetime of injuries imposed on them by her negligence. That unfortunate occurrence does not take into account the harm inflicted by her 15-year-old son's actions with a weapon his parents did not responsibly secure from him. No, in my view, the tragedy is not Jennifer Crumbley's conviction. Not at all. Far from it.

Does this sound like I am unsympathetic towards Jennifer Crumbley's plight? The answer to said question is the old cliche "right on the money." Perhaps if more parents were criminally charged in mass shootings by their children the messages of those actions would go a long way in assisting to end this lunacy.

If the minor offspring of an adult obtains a gun and uses the weapon to perpetrate injury or death upon themselves or another human being, should the irresponsible parent, who should have been prudent in the matter of the safe and secure storage of said firearm, not be held accountable for their impertinent failure to do so?

Here are three cases in points to consider before you answer that question. Let's begin with a woman charged with culpable negligence because she stashed a loaded gun underneath some dirty laundry. Her child found the gun and accidentally shot himself.

How about the incidence in which a mother was charged with negligence because her son grabbed a gun out of her car and shot at another youngster? By the way, the targeted boy was no saint. He was a well known bully. However, I will leave that topic for another discussion.

This case may be near the top of the list for why parents need to be held criminally accountable for the safe storage of weapons. In addition, mothers are not the only parents who should be held obligated when weapons are not properly stored and someone gets shot by that inaptly secured gun.

The father in this situation stored a loaded, unsafe rifle within inches of where his 12-year-old son slept. The AR-15 lacked a functioning safety. Authorities had previously warned the father to properly secure the rifle. Officially stated, this case was regarded as "a gross and flagrant disregard for the safety of his children," especially the sleeping boy who never woke up again.

In my opinion, it was right in each one of these examples the parents were held accountable for their weapons not being correctly secured. Jennifer Crumbley will receive the exact consequences she warranted herself for her crime. Her husband, James Crumbley, has his court date to come. He should expect no less than she receives.

I can hear many people crying the blues about how dangerous guns are. I have stated my stance on that subject several times before and will reiterate my thoughts once more. BY THEMSELVES, GUNS DO NOT KILL PEOPLE.

It is when a gun is in the hands of a wrong person someone is prone to be injured or killed. I am still waiting for somebody, anybody, to prove to me there has ever been as much as one single instance where a gun picked itself up, aimed itself at a target, and fired itself at that person. Such a situation does not exist because the circumstance has never occurred. Not once. What does that tell you? Correctamondo, amigos! Guns are inanimate objects. They can not do these things unless they are in the hands of the wrong person.

Yes, I am fully aware guns are a hot button monster on both sides of the coin. An issue most likely to never be resolved. However, I will leave that topic for another forum. If you own a gun be responsible and keep the weapon properly secured at all times. It really is that simple.

I believe in the 2nd Amendment of the United States Constitution's right to keep and bear arms in all their shining glory. Whatever that may well be. My position on the issue is not going to change. With all the stupidity occurring in the world today, possessing a gun may become necessary, but do so...RESPONSIBLY.