A man shot and killed himself Thursday evening at a Timonium gun shop and firing range, according to Baltimore County police spokesman Cpl. John Wachter.
Police responded to a 911 call regarding a shooting at the Continental Arms firing range a little after 5 p.m., Thursday.
It was determined at the scene that the man died of a self-inflicted gun shot wound. Two police cruisers remained in the upper parking lot on Deereco Road as of 6 p.m.
There were no other injuries reported.
Individuals seeking to rent a gun at Continental Arms must first provide a driver's license or some other form of government-issued identification. First time range shooters must also read over the rules and regulations of the range before obtaining a gun, in addition to filling out paperwork.
Patrons are often quizzed verbally on the rules, Patch has observed on a number of occasions.
Additionally, all ammunition used at the range must be purchased there.
It is unclear at this time if the deceased was a regular shooter at the firing range.
The deceased was found in the firing range area at Continental Arms and not the gun shop.
Continental Arms is located at 9603 Deereco Road in Timonium.
Stay with Patch for updates.
Lots of people embellish their "experience" with firearms. Being nice is definitely second to keeping the range safe. I had an enlightening experience at a range northeast of here; the RO looked on as this guy *repeatedly* did a muzzle sweep of the range (and it was busy!) with his shotgun. I packed up my crap and left. If the RO isn't going to say something, I'm not gonna be the victim of a ND.
The reason I landed here is because channel 13 news teased this story as 'man killed at continental arms' at 6pm then never followed up. I imagine once they found out it was suicide they canned the story so that other unstable folks don't duplicate which is commendable.
I would not risk injury by shooting the breeze around moving machinery, and it's just the same principle. You're dealing with an implement that can cause injury if it's handled carelessly. Maybe you'd like to meet my cousin, who lost his left index finger in a chop saw, because he wasn't paying attention...
Most importantly GOD is in control and He love each and everyone of us more than we can imagion! My prayers go out to all involved! Blessings and Peace tommy g
For what it's worth, every range that has been in business for a while has had at least one suicide. What some people have criticized here as a negative attitude from the staff at this place is VIGILANCE. You work in a gun shop or range, and you have a responsibility to watch and evaluate everyone within sight, all the time. Even people who are well known. I am less likely to shoot at a public range where people are all warm and fuzzy. This is not "fun," folks--it's dead serious stuff, and if you don't think of it that way, I hope you're not on the firing line when I am, because I don't want you endangering me by having so much fun you aren't paying attention. I have seen it, especially with groups of people. In fact, I have left the range and reported it to the RO on occasion.
But you cannot control anyone but yourself: maintain situational awareness, stay in control of your temper and actions, try to act with a bit of dignity and maturity, be as considerate of others as possible. Trouble will still find you. When it does, you deal with it, put it behind you as quickly as possible and stay the course.
Simultaneously, I had suggested that the editors of Patch remove some of the other comments that seem inappropriate. That they have not done, and that's fine. Another mistake I made was to engage in a protracted exchange with someone who lacks the courage to make himself unambiguously identifiable. That's a principle I have held to online for many years, and I regret having been goaded into violating it. As one of my mentors is fond of observing: "Never wrestle with a pig--both of you get muddy, and the pig actually enjoys it."
I could have been worse. Which is why I don't understand the people who have complained here that the CA people were not sufficiently friendly and touchy-feely for their taste. I want the employees, especially the range safety officer, to be dead serious, and paying full attention. There's one RSO there who is a long time IPSC competitor, and he does not let anything get past him, especially in the matter of people getting sloppy about muzzle control. I am always glad to see him on the job. The other guy who probably rubs people the wrong way is that 70-ish man with the Italian surname. This man is retired from the Coast Guard, has been in a lot of tough scrapes, and is not someone you want to displease. But I have never known him to be nasty, just extremely direct. It took me about six months of regular shooting there to earn his respect, and now that I have assisted in a couple of classes that he has taught, I have a good feel for the kind of foolishness these people have to tolerate every single day. And, after all, this ain't tiddlywinks; it's a sport that involves deadly weapons.
1. I'm just as happy that you don't want to shoot there. The place seems plenty busy without your business, and for my own safety I'd just as soon not be around other shooters who less than fully satisfied with the place. So, thanks for taking your business elsewhere. 2. Like most people on Patch, you have posted here more-or-less anonymously, and in your case I think that is a wise decision, since you have made some unsupported and potentially libelous assertions about the place and the way it's managed. Beside running several businesses of my own I worked as a ticket agent for Trailways for a time. I learned that no matter what you do, you cannot possibly please everyone, and that if you run your enterprise on the principle of accommodating the crankiest element among your customers, you will usually end up having alienated the very people you'd prefer to have spending time and money in your place of business. So "Steve," whoever you may be: have a nice life. It sounds as though you are working awfully hard in the opposite direction, but that's really none of my concern. :)
Since the beginning, I have been arguing that Patch ought to require real-name identities, or at least check to make sure people aren't posting under several names from the same IP address. To no avail. Back in the era of CompuServe and some of its competitors, you were not allowed to be anonymous, and IMHO things remained far more civil as a result. No personal insult intended here to El Capitan and some others who have used a pseudonym responsibly for many years. I myself posted a blog for more than five years in which I was not identified by my real name. I had a change of heart about that a few years ago, and the only worry about my using my real-world name is that the occasional abusive phone call has been misdirected to my Mom, whose phone is still listed under my late father's name, which is the same as mine.
That's your idea of responsible? That's funny.