If nothing else, it should give one pause.
We are all capable of 'getting stupid'

+1

Exactly the point. Sixteen year olds shouldn't be in performance cars. Three year olds don't get to play with lighters. My dad and I watched a show essentially titled "what the **** were they thinking". One video was of a five year old getting a mini-motorcycle for his birthday. The parents put the kid on the bike, the kid roared off and ran into the tail gate of a near by parked pickup truck. Children and adolescents don't know how much physical control they have. They see things on TV or that adults do and they want to emulate them. To what extent are allowed to and at what point in their maturity is the responsibility of their parents and, failing that, the people with authority in the situation. Carnies don't let kids get on rides they aren't secure riding. Why should a person at a booth at a gun show get a pass because we have freedom of arms?

And lets face it, the authorities are doing the right thing here. They're not pushing for new laws, they're prosecuting under the laws we already have. There's already been a pretty egregious failure of parenting. There's also been a failure of responsible gun ownership. There was a failure of law enforcement personnel (since one of the people in charge of the situation was a police chief). Now its at the judicial system level.

"I'm not so sure anyone should be charged."

Why not? There were several people involved that apparently had the intelligence of roadkill. An 8-yr-old kid has had the top of his head blown off for no good reason. His father may have another kid or two he can kill off creatively, who knows?

"Gee, I'm sorry" just doesn't cut it.

There are people so stupid that they would do the same thing all over again! If nothing else, a court case may make other dolts who have the same idea realize that it may not be a good idea.

Maybe.

Sue