Questions linger after gun-lovin' mom says son shot her
PALATKA, Fla. -- Sheriff's investigators in north Florida were trying on Thursday to determine how a 4-year-old boy got his hands on the gun they say he used to shoot his mother as she drove a pickup truck.
Jamie Gilt, 31, of Jacksonville owns the .45-caliber gun the boy fired Tuesday afternoon, Putnam County Sheriff's Office spokesman Joseph Wells said.
Wells said a deputy saw her behaving frantically inside the truck, which was stopped partially in the road. The deputy then saw she'd been shot in the back and the bullet had exited from her stomach area, Wells said.
Gilt told deputies her son had accidentally shot her, according to Wells. She was taken to a hospital and was in stable condition, but investigators had not been able to interview her, Wells said.
The boy, who wasn't injured, is with relatives. The Florida Department of Children and Families also is investigating.
Under Florida law, it is a misdemeanor for someone to store or leave a loaded gun where a child has access to it.
"They must keep firearms secured and locked," Wells said.
Deputies told CBS Jacksonville affiliate WJAX-TV that a decision about charges related to where the gun was stored will not come until after they speak with Gilt.
Gilt is apparently a gun lover who made numerous social media postings about gun rights.
A community Facebook page listed under "Jamie Gilt for Gun Sense" was filled with posts advocating for gun rights, including a quote that says "My right to protect my child with my gun trumps your fear of my gun."
The Associated Press was unable to verify whether the page, which has since been taken down, belonged to Gilt. A person who answered the phone at her house on Thursday morning declined to comment.
Before it was removed from public view, the Facebook page featured many posts from other pages supporting gun ownership and vilifying proposals for more gun control.
The short description of the page on Facebook said it was a place "to connect people that share a common goal. That goal is to protect and expand our 2nd Amendment rights."
After the news broke about Gilt's shooting, the posts appeared to be inundated with mocking comments from other Facebook users.
In comments posted March 7 to one post on the page, a user named Jamie Gilt wrote: "I can promise though, if someone breaks into my house, or tries to harm me or my family pretty anywhere, they will be shot and most likely killed. It's my right to protect my life." The same user later replied to another comment about teaching children to shoot: "All of ours know how to shoot too. Even my 4 year old gets jacked up to target shoot with the .22."