As my colleague Sister Toldjah reported, Missouri Republican Sen. Josh Hawley came down difficult on his opponent, Democrat Lucas Kunce, after a campaign photo op involving guns went horribly wrong. KSHB 41 News reporter Ryan Gamboa, who was on scene to cover the event, ended up being hit by flying shrapnel. Kunce was either too shameless (or too stupid) about the repercussions of publishing this debacle and posted the photos on X, calling it a “great day at the range.”
Great day today at the shooting range with my friend @AdamKinzinger. We were able to spend time with some union members while exercising our freedom. Always keep your first aid kit handy. Shrapnel can fly whenever you hit a target like today, and you have to be ready. We initially had four… pic.twitter.com/Qu4YxfrtrU
— Lucas Kunce (@LucasKunceMO) October 23, 2024
Since then, Hawley has tweeted quotes like: “My grandma is a better shot than Lucas Kunce” and “I will provide safety equipment to all reporters covering Lucas Kunce. For free. Enjoy!“ But Hawley uncovered even more material with the background of the person who arranged this event.
So Kunce’s fake gun shooting stunt, where he shot the reporter, was organized by a criminal? Who should not have access to firearms? What’s going on here? pic.twitter.com/TrNmMS7Cup
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) October 24, 2024
Great. According to local reports, Chad Everett Downs is currently charged with perjury, and one of the conditions of his bail is that he is not allowed to have access to or be near firearms.
Court records also show that a Holt man who played a role in setting up the shooting range and remained near Kunce and Kinzinger during the shooting is charged with perjury for lying in a dismissed child molestation case.
Hoo boy.
While Kunce and Kinziger shot, Chad Everett Downs stayed nearby. Before the event, Downs spoke with a star photojournalist and said the range was his, but the event was held at his neighbor’s home.
Downs said he lives “across the street” and said his neighbor gave him permission to shoot on the property. He showed The Star firearms that were on the table and belonged to him.
Missouri court records show Downs was charged with 17 counts of perjury in August by Ray County Prosecutor Camille Johnston. He was issued a summons and waived his preliminary hearing. His ex-wife claimed in a court appearance earlier this month that the man owned or had access to weapons, a breach of his bail conditions.
Kunce thought he would get a great photo op to show how good he is with firearms and his support for gun rights. Instead, he has become the poster boy for the Democrats and their nefarious connections. Kunce also conveyed the opposite message of what he was trying to project. Your little show made a good case for why proper training is significant, and just because you claim to have a military background doesn’t mean you know how to handle firearms.
But interviews with gun safety experts and a review of court records raise deeper concerns about the event that go beyond bad optics.
Experts who spoke to The Star raised questions about safety at the shooting range. They described best practices that seemed to contradict the scene shown in the photos. For example, the shooters seemed to be too close to the targets.
And when Kinsinger and Kunce miss their targets, the bullets fly hundreds of feet down because there’s no backstop, and because they’re firing into dense forests, they have no idea who or what might be hit… Hikers? Children on bikes? Vehicles on roads? Houses?… https://t.co/FF89l37Asu
— Zeke Stonekiller (@ZekeStonekiller) October 23, 2024
When I spoke to the weapons trainer and the founder of We, the woman organization, Kerry Slone, she joked:
“Now we see why these guys want this Ban Firearms.” Slone continued to joke, “We can tell who went to the Dick Cheney School of Shooting!”
But Slone’s tone sobered, because while we can joke about this incident because no one was seriously injured, Kunce, Kinzinger and Downs’ lack of experience and ultimate negligence created the atmosphere in which a real tragedy unfolded.
Unfortunately, the overwhelming majority of people who either own guns or claim to be “gun people” really have no idea how to safely operate firearms at all.
Kunce and Kinzinger have proven this. As Air National Guard and Marines respectively, neither of them knew how to set up a proper firing range. The Missouri Firearms Coalition spoke out and said they had done something wrong with any experienced shooter.
In case you haven’t heard, Democratic Senate candidate @LucasKunceMO and former RINO representative. @AdamKinzinger (who hates guns and Trump) staged a fraudulent shooting range to impress the media and claim that Kunce was not a gun robber. He is. 100%.
Then they shoot bullet fragments into the arm… pic.twitter.com/bb8cjODVEo
— Missouri Firearms Coalition (@MOFirearms2A) October 23, 2024
Your full post:
In case you haven’t heard, Democratic Senate candidate @LucasKunceMO and former RINO representative. @AdamKinzinger (who hates guns and Trump) staged a fraudulent shooting range to impress the media and claim that Kunce was not a gun robber. He is. 100%.
They then shoot bullet fragments into the arm of a nearby reporter. Bad situation caused by clowns who can’t handle the very guns they want to confiscate.
How many stupid things do you see in this picture? The sound is off in the comments section. Here are a few that come to mind:
1. Um, you don’t shoot steel targets at 10 yards with a damn AR-15. A child knows this will be perilous.
2. You do not employ such a scope for targets that are close by.
3. Your eye protector belongs in front of your eyes, not on your head.
4. Adam, you’re sitting back like a wimp. Act like a man, lean into it.
5. Vertical foregrip is not a mistake, but very fashionable, circa 2005. What else do you have?
Kunce should also report any campaign incident that resulted in an injury to the county sheriff. The shooting happened on Tuesday. Kunce waited until Wednesday to report it.
Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Lucas Kunce has notified law enforcement of an incident at a building Election campaign event on Tuesday A KSHB 41 News reporter was injured.
Clinton County, Missouri, Sheriff Larry Fish said in a statement to KSHB 41 News that Kunce notified officers of the incident on Wednesday.
Reporter Ryan Gamboa gave his statement to the sheriff about the incident but does not plan to press charges, according to the sheriff’s report. Slone’s response was, “After being shot by a RINO and a wannabe Democrat senator, the reporter is definitely voting for Trump.”
Maybe she’s not wrong. Or he shifted his support to Hawley, who he believes didn’t hurt anyone.
