I was watching GreenRedmond volunteer Doug Schmitt ride his mountain bike on the dirt jumps this afternoon and "a funny thing happened."
We were walking the improved course to get a feel for it. Off to the right, I was startled by four high schoolers is "army colors" loading pump guns and shooting pellets over head. I yelled out : "Watch it, I want to keep my eyes!" They said not to worry and kept shooting.
It just didn't seem right. I asked two elementary-aged girls what the boys were shooting. "Airsoft pellets" they said. They opened their hands to show me hundreds multi-colored "bullets" they had collected. One little girl said she was hit in the finger from a distance. (Apparently, it's a shooting game similar to paint-ball.)
According to Wikipedia:
I was surprised, but totally impressed with how the two officers handled the situation. The lead officer must have spent 45 minutes with the bullies explaining the seriousness and illegality of their activity. The officer said it was so illegal that they: 1) could have to go to court and 2) talk to Judge. He made them call their parents for a talk-out on the site. I think he confiscated their paraphanlia.
The take-home message for me was: if something is suspicious, doesn't look right, and could be dangerous, CALL 911. Don't even hesistate: Call 911. We all have cell-phones. We need to use them. I guarantee you, I won't hesitate next time. I'll be calling 911 at the slightest doubt. And, so will my trail friends.
Have you ever called 911 for suspicious activity? Are you hesitant or afraid to call 911? Did you know your taxes pay for 911 police service? Is there a place in Redmond where it's legal for kids to play with "airsoft pellet guns"? Do you think the police should have been more lenient?
We were walking the improved course to get a feel for it. Off to the right, I was startled by four high schoolers is "army colors" loading pump guns and shooting pellets over head. I yelled out : "Watch it, I want to keep my eyes!" They said not to worry and kept shooting.
It just didn't seem right. I asked two elementary-aged girls what the boys were shooting. "Airsoft pellets" they said. They opened their hands to show me hundreds multi-colored "bullets" they had collected. One little girl said she was hit in the finger from a distance. (Apparently, it's a shooting game similar to paint-ball.)
According to Wikipedia:
"Airsoft pellets typically leave small wheals (welts) on human targets. While mildly painful, pellets are not especially damaging to the skin. Eye protection is universally required to prevent damage to eyes. It is also often recommended that full face masks and body protection be used during airsoft matches to protect the players' teeth and ears." WikipediaI remembered. in my youth it was cool to shoot copper pellet Beebe guns, but my parents never let me because beebes could break the skin and kill an eye. Well, no sooner did we round the corner than two uniformed Redmond police officers came running onto the course. Apparently, some sixth-graders were bullied off of the jumps and their parents called 911.
I was surprised, but totally impressed with how the two officers handled the situation. The lead officer must have spent 45 minutes with the bullies explaining the seriousness and illegality of their activity. The officer said it was so illegal that they: 1) could have to go to court and 2) talk to Judge. He made them call their parents for a talk-out on the site. I think he confiscated their paraphanlia.
The take-home message for me was: if something is suspicious, doesn't look right, and could be dangerous, CALL 911. Don't even hesistate: Call 911. We all have cell-phones. We need to use them. I guarantee you, I won't hesitate next time. I'll be calling 911 at the slightest doubt. And, so will my trail friends.
Have you ever called 911 for suspicious activity? Are you hesitant or afraid to call 911? Did you know your taxes pay for 911 police service? Is there a place in Redmond where it's legal for kids to play with "airsoft pellet guns"? Do you think the police should have been more lenient?
VERY informative and educational. I have wondered about whether they were legal or not in parks. This is especially valuable for me to educate my sons and their friends.
ReplyDelete-Brian Hansford
Redmond Resident
in the interest of editorial clarity, most people would call these BB guns...
ReplyDeletehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BB_gun
You are incorrect. If they are shooting each other, they are not BB guns. BB guns are used for target practice and occasional bird hunting. The multicolored pellets come from air-soft guns. Air-soft guns are designed to cause minimal damage so that you are aware if you've been hit, but not cause lasting injuries.
ReplyDeleteThere's no real value in wordsmithing these guns as 1) BEBE guns or 2)a sub-set of BEBE guns or 3) "harmless air-soft" guns. The point is, they can take an eye out, they are dangerous, and when using air-soft guns a face-mask is required. The last commentor is wrong. If eye projection is not used, air-soft guns can cause lasting damage e.g. eye loss.
ReplyDeleteThe question remains: Are these gaming-guns (that look like lethal weapons)allowed outside our city parks? Is there a shooting range or shooting arena in Redmond where these gaming guns are allowed? Does the city have a written policy on the use of these guns inside city limits?
1) I guess you're right, making sure people fully understand what we're talking about has no real value.
ReplyDelete2) Nobody said they were harmless, merely that if used correctly they are designed to cause minimal damage (small welts).
3) It's stupid of those kids not be wearing glasses.
4) I'm guessing you mean inside our parks, and no they are not allowed inside our parks.
5) No, there is not a place to shoot in Redmond
6) yes.
I think that a place should be designated where kids/teenagers be allowed to play. The sport itself is extremely enjoyable and requires excellent hand-eye coordination, extreme endurance and quick feet.
The sport has the appeal of a video game, but allows our youth to go outside and enjoy the great weather we have here (especially in the last few days).
Whoa! What we ARE talking about has real value, Mr. Anonygun. The kids in the dirt jump park were NOT using the guns correctly. They weren't using eye protection and they were firing their guns around other kids and bystanders who had no protection.
ReplyDeleteAnd what makes you such an expert to know they are not allowed in our parks?
because I googled redmond code....
ReplyDeletehttp://www.codepublishing.com/WA/redmond.html
I didn't say they were using the guns correctly, but if a park is set up that allows them to play, we can make sure they do.
Wow, Mr. Anonygun - or should I call you AnonyGov?! To refer to city code - now that's impressive! You've done your homework. I'll have to compare notes with Mr. Bove, our Public Informtion Officer. Maybe you can help us non-wonks and cite the specific code...
ReplyDeleteYou better get hopp'n if you want a city soft-air or paintball park. The dirt jumps are already reserved - please remind your air-gun gamer friends. Suggest you talk to the Parks and Trails Commission to get your application in for a new niche air-pellet park. They may find a place for it somewhere...would surely be healther than sitting behind a gaming computer.
9.32.090 Firearms and explosives.
ReplyDelete*different person, just helping out*
Thank you AnonyGov #2. The code appears to be park-specific; what about the rest of the city?
ReplyDelete"Amendment of Section. RMC 9.32.090, Parks, Firearms and Explosives, is hereby amended to provide as follows:
It is unlawful to shoot, fire, or explode any firearms, rockets, fireworks, firecrackers, torpedo or explosive of any kind or to shoot or fire any air gun, bows and arrows, BB gun, or use any slingshot or other propelling device wherein the applied human energy or force is artificially aided, directed or added to in any PARK, except in such designated recreational areas as may be designated by the director and/or law enforcement officials acting in official capacity."
Airsoft is a sport, just like paintball. Unfortunately it is less known sport. Airsoft guns are legal but required by law to have an orange tip at the end to signify them as fake weapons. But please do not confuse little kids with pump airsoft guns, and real airsoft players. I am an avid airsoft player and my team and I have designated areas that we go to. These areas are usually deep in the forest where people will not go, or on private land where we have permission. The main rules we follow are 1) never brandish your gun in public. 2) always transport your gun in a case, in the trunk of your vehicle. 3) If you do not have a case, you will not play. 4) Treat every airsoft gun as if it were a loaded fire arm. 5) Eye protection absolutely required. 6) If anyone who is no involved in the game were to walk through, all action stops immediately and we make ourselves know to said person, and allow them to pass to a safe distance before we resume. These are the rules all true airsoft sportsman follow. Little kids with guns that their parents bought them and are playing with them in a park is not true airsoft. Just a couple of ignorant children.
ReplyDelete