The family of a Tampa Bay-area boy hit by a stray bullet on New Year's Day 2012 is urging gun owners not to fire into the air to celebrate the holidays.
Authorities blamed celebratory gunfire for Diego Duran's injuries. Now 14, the high school freshman still suffers from memory problems.
His family started a charity, Bullet Free Sky, to spread awareness about the dangers of celebratory gunfire. The Tampa Bay Times reports that at a news conference Friday at a Tampa gun range, Diego's mother said the charity is "not anti-gun" but "pro-common sense."
Sandy Duran said that "when you shoot in the air, the bullets don't evaporate or disappear." She wants state legislators to increase penalties for shooting into the air, which currently is a misdemeanor in Florida.
