Police Reports

California man rents gun, shoots himself at shop’s gun range

April 08, at about 7:45 p.m. Vermont State Police were dispatched to Parro’s Gun Shop and Police Supply, located at 601 US Route 2, Waterbury for a report of a self-inflicted gun-shot wound. Waterbury Ambulance Service responded, along with Barre Town EMS and the male was pronounced deceased, state police say.

Investigation showed a 24-year old male from California, who was temporarily living in Vermont, traveled to Parro’s and rented a firearm, purchased ammunition, and 1-hour of range time for target shooting. After approximately 40 minutes of target shooting, the male suffered an intentional self-inflicted gunshot wound. The incident was captured on security footage.

No further details about the incident are available.

Categories: Police Reports

19 replies »

  1. My heart goes out to the loved ones of this poor demented soul. Don’t suppose that he had the 72 hour waiting period in mind do you ? That’s a hell of a way to make a political statement.

  2. RENTED ,,, The man RENTED the gun. Since he was a resident of California ( not Vermont) , he would not have been able to legally purchase ( or take possession of) a pistol.

  3. He didn’t buy the gun, he rented it. Big difference. Otherwise we will hear nothing but how a waiting period would have saved this young man.

  4. Let this serve as somber evidence, whether it’s Quechee Gorge, Amtrak or a firearm, if hell bent on exiting this world, we can’t legislate against it.

    Like clockwork, the disconnected family of this young man that weren’t there for him when he needed support most will attempt to assign responsibility elsewhere. Sad world. Are you listening Rep. Black?

  5. Horrific. Why didn’t he just seek out the Progressives’ assisted suicide services, and take a legal injection (or street fentanyl) rather than feed into Baruth’s vile effort to take guns under the pretense of preventing suicide? Now we must all lock up our guns lest some out-of-stater comes here to kill himself? The world is gone nuts.

    • For all we know, he was a Manchurian Candidate re: suicide by gun which fits neatly with the mental health angle that Dems/progressives are using re: gun-control. My rep, Theresa Wood actually mentioned this as her reasoning point when I debated her Oct 11 ’22 ORCA Studio

  6. Tragic & so sad. The “progressive”, woke, extremist, anti-science, anti-women, culture of death, enabling of addictions, and pro-lawlessness agenda isn’t helping anyone in this country & some people just cannot cope.

    Without stability and a sense of family and/or community, of God & faith, of patriotism, and of the hope that those who generally impart good in this world will be rewarded either here or in the hereafter, people feel that they have nothing to live for.

    Those in Vermont who treat life so flippantly through recent legislative bills and condemnable amendments to a once upstanding document known as this state’s Constitution truly have blood on their hands here – and they might feel remorse if it were not for the pervasive and unquenchable drive they possess for more power and authority over those they have elected to merely serve.

  7. This is an unfortunate occurrence for all involved. Will this prompt the legislature to require a firearms rental waiting period at the indoor shooting range? In reality, all the laws on the books have not stopped any criminal, mentally ill person or psychopath from doing harm to themselves or others. How will the next law passed to restrict the whole public at large stop the small percentage responsible for all the death and injury? Nothing has worked so far and laws passed to restrict those who aren’t the problem will not work either.

    The only thing so far not tried by the nanny state legislature is to lock us all up before the few who are actually responsible can act to harm or kill another person or themself. Laws are for those who have a healthy respect for civility and society. The mentally ill and criminals do not obey laws, is that hard to understand. Punishing the public at large and restricting their constitutional rights is a fool errand. These legislators can not be concerned with real solutions as long as they go after those who are not responsible, the law abiding public while mental health and real solutions are ignored.

    All the money wasted by this tiny state believing it can change the world’s climate, legislate racism, support gender dysphoria like it’s normal and heal the planet could and should be used to find the cause of the rampant mental health issues, homelessness and drug addiction which are the actual causes of most of our problems. An agenda appears to be more important than the health of our state and it’s people. Just passing another law is lazy, incompetence that will not work either. They know the definition of crazy but keep doing the same thing over and over which is ignoring the real issue of mental health and the lack there of.

    • It would be easy for baruth to amend his S.11 to add in rentals, specifically. S.11 already amends 13 V.S.A. § 4017, increasing the list of “prohibited persons”.
      This suicide is fodder for his firearms arguments.

    • Did you miss this in the article? “After approximately 40 minutes of target shooting, the male suffered an intentional self-inflicted gunshot wound. The incident was captured on security footage”.

    • At the end of the first paragraph in the article the author states that he was declared “deceased”.

  8. You can pass all the fun laws you want, if someone wants to die they will find a way. Ever heard of suicide by Police?

    • It’s all a ruse, as always. These are the same folks avidly enabling & encouraging both Vermonters AND people from all over the rest of the country to come here to off themselves. Hypocrisy: Thy name is: Democrats. (For the most part, though RFK JR. seems to be more balanced & centered except that you cannot locate a dang thing about him for the plethora of propaganda & lies the left has already smeared him with within only the first week of his announcement to run for POTUS). The radical dems are ruthless S.O.Bs by ANY standard.

      Next Step: The networks (aka government-sponsored media) will prevent him from taking part in the debates as they did with Gabbard and Delaney last go-round.

      We ARE China!! No Constitutional Republic here.

  9. Despite the circumstances of it being committed in a commercial establishment open to the public, if someone was so mentally tortured, we can we grateful that he had the self-dignity and the respect for others to use the gun only on himself. If he otherwise had a rational reason for choosing to end his life such as dealing with a terminal illness, how can he be criticized in a state which offers a statutory avenue for suicide? He may have just not wanted to go through the bureaucracy and did not feel the need for “professional assistance”. If he had purchased the firearm instead of renting it, his family/loved-ones would have to deal with disposing of it, adding to their grief. Anyone who would exploit this incident to promote gun restrictions is disrespecting the free will of an individual who wants control over their destiny, for whatever reason. Rest in Peace…