NSW Greens MP admits to almost shooting his brother
Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham told parliament that he almost shot his brother in the face with a loaded handgun when he was 15 years old
Greens MP Jeremy Buckingham told NSW parliament that he almost shot his brother in the head with a loaded handgun when he was 15 years old.
The shocking admission was revealed during an Upper House debate on Wednesday night when the 43-year-old wanted to explain how easily guns can fall into the hands of children.
His brother Jesse wasn’t killed because the first chamber of the handgun had been left empty, but when Mr Buckingham pulled the trigger a second time a round shot into the wall and there was ‘gunpowder everywhere’.
The Greens member said that he found the gun in his family’s home in Tasmania after his father’s friend came to stay.
‘He was a shooter and he and his wife were estranged. Tasmania had particular laws that allowed him to carry a number of firearms including a .22 calibre handgun,’ Mr Buckingham said.
‘He was reloading the handgun before meeting his estranged wife. He was going to give her the handgun but he forgot it and left it in our house next to the toilet.’
When a 15-year-old Mr Buckingham eventually used the bathroom he saw the small gun beside him.
‘I picked it up and walked out of the toilet bouncing the gun in my hand. I had never seen a handgun in my life. I walked into the kitchen, put it underneath my brother’s chin and pulled the trigger.
‘I had never seen a handgun in my life. I walked into the kitchen, put it underneath my brother’s chin and pulled the trigger,’ Mr Buckingham said (stock image)
‘It clicked. I looked around. I pulled the trigger again and I blew a hole in the wall — gunpowder everywhere.’
It was at this point in his speech that Mr Buckingham admitted it was the empty first chamber of the revolver that saved his brother.
‘My father’s friend had inadvertently left that handgun in the house. Having firearms in the house did not make anyone safer,’ he said.
Mr Buckingham’s position that safe storage of firearms is near impossible stems partly from the terrifyingly close call that saw him almost gun his brother down
Wednesday’s debate surrounded current gun legislation and whether the gun restrictions currently in place are strong enough.
Mr Buckingham’s position is that the safe storage of firearms is vitally importantly from the experience he had in Tasmania.
The gun safety discussion comes after a 38-year-old Perth man was charged with possession of a unlicensed firearm on Monday after attempting to storm a social basketball match because he didn’t agree with the umpire’s rulings.
The latest research shows there were 211 gun deaths in Australia in 2015, which was down from 230 deaths in 2014.
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