Local News

WESTFIELD (WBZ) ― An 8-year-old boy has died after accidentally shooting himself in the head while firing an Uzi submachine gun under adult supervision at a gun fair.
 
Westfield police said Christopher Bizilj of Ashford, Conn. lost control of the weapon as he was firing it Sunday at the Machine Gun Shoot and Firearms Expo at the Westfield Sportsman's Club. 

YouTube: Video of 2007 Firearms Expo at Westfield Sportsman's Club

What Happened?

Police said Christopher was with a certified instructor, and they called the incident a "self-inflicted accidental shooting."
 
"The weapon was loaded and ready to fire," police Lt. Hipolito Nunez said. "The 8-year-old victim had the Uzi and as he was firing the weapon, the front end of the weapon went up with the backfire and he ended up receiving a round in his head."

He was conscious and lying on the ground with a wound to the right side of his head when police and emergency medical technicians arrived, according to the Springfield Republican.

Christopher was rushed to Baystate Medical Center where he died.

Police said the boy's father, Charles Bijilz, attended the event with his son. The father is the medical director of emergency medicine at Johnson Memorial Hospital, in Stafford Springs, Conn.

Bijilz spoke with the Boston Globe Monday and said he gave his son permission to use the Uzi. He said his son was very well trained and very comfortable with weapons.

"I watched several other children and adults use it. It's a small weapon, and Christopher was comfortable with guns," he told the Globe. "There were larger guns with much more recoil, and we avoided those."

"This is a horrible event, a horrible travesty, and I really don't know why it happened," Bijilz added. "I don't think it's relevant that he (shooting guide) wasn't holding the weapon."

Community Reaction

Christopher was a well-liked third-grader at the Ashford School and played soccer in town, said Leonard Lanza, interim superintendent of Ashford public schools.
 
Christopher's brother, Colin, a sixth-grader at the same school, was with him during the accident, and crisis counselors spoke with students in both boys' classes, Lanza said.

"It's been a very nasty day for the whole community," Lanza said. "One does what one can."

Although the death appears to be an accident, Hampden District Attorney William Bennett declined to comment until the investigation was complete.

"We are going to review all the circumstance regarding what happened, who was involved, what authorities they may or may not have had, who was supervising," Bennett said.

Discuss: Do Children & Automatic Weapons Mix?

About The Event

According to the club's Web site, the event, run in conjunction with C.O.P Firearms and Training, is "all legal and fun."

The site said people are allowed to fire weapons "full auto rock 'n' roll" at vehicles, pumpkins and "other stuff we can't print here."
 
According to a flyer for the event, there was no age limit "or licenses required to shoot machine guns, handguns, rifles, or shotguns."

According to an advertisement for the event, the Westfield Sportsman's Club said they offer machine gun demonstrations and rentals and free handgun lessons and that no permits or licenses were required.

Children were encouraged to come to these gun expos because anyone under the age of 16 was admitted free.

Mass. Gun Laws

Under Massachusetts gun laws, children can fire weapons at a gun club – provided they are under the direction of a licensed instructor, and under parental supervision.

Those conditions were met in this case, Lt. Hipolito Nunez said Monday.

Read: Mass. Laws Governing Gun Clubs
Read: Overview of Mass. Gun Laws from NRA

At Stop Handgun Violence, a local gun control advocacy group, they say they are mystified by the incident and said Massachusetts needs to tighten up on its gun laws.

"It seems ridiculous that you'd have to pass a law to tell somebody not to give an Uzi to an 8 year old," said Jerry Belair with Stop Handgun Violence. "It seems so counter intuitive that that would be necessary, but my God, somebody just did it."

The Gun Club

The Westfield Sportsman's Club is a private club founded in 1949 and touts itself as an organization that promotes "the interest of legal sport with rod, gun, and bow and arrow, both directly and through training."
 
It has eight firing ranges as well as archery and fishing facilities located on 375 acres in Westfield, about 100 miles west of Boston.

(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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