Pro-Gun Mom Shot By 4-Year-Old May Face Charges

PALATKA, FL — The 31-year-old founder of a Facebook community for 2nd Amendment rights supporters shot in the back earlier this month by her 4-year-old son may face charges in the case.

The Putnam County Sheriff’s Office announced the results of its investigation Tuesday. The agency has filled out an affidavit charging Jamie Gilt with improper storage of a firearm, but the ultimate decision on making an arrest lies in the hands of the Putnam County State Attorney’s Office, according to a statement released by Capt. Gator DeLoach.

Gilt, the founder of the now-defunct Jaime Gilt for Gun Sense Facebook community, was shot while driving a pickup truck and horse trailer on Rowland Avenue around 3 p.m. March 8, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said. The shooter, the agency said, was her son, who was in the truck's backseat.

Before the shooting, Gilt posted extensively on her Facebook page about gun owner rights and also wrote about her son's shooting abilities. Some of her posts included links to gun rights articles and memes related to the topic.

"My right to protect my child with my gun trumps your fear of my gun," read one of the memes, posted on Feb. 13.

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Gilt's page was taken down shortly after the shooting. Before the page was removed, Gilt had 765 followers.

The sheriff’s office on Tuesday released more information about the events that led to Gilt’s shooting. She and her son were traveling from Jacksonville to a home in Putnam County to pick up a horse when the shooting occurred, the statement said. Gilt was waiting for a break in traffic to make a U-turn when “she felt something strike her in the back, then noticed the windshield of her truck was broken. Seconds later, Jamie began to bleed from her chest.”

Shortly after the shooting, Gilt was able to flag down Deputy Wayne Jones.

“Deputy Jones made sure Gilt’s son was not injured, secured the handgun which he found in the rear floorboard, called for assistance and began rendering aid to Gilt until EMS arrived,” the statement said.

Gilt was hospitalized following the shooting and an investigation into just how the 4-year-old got his hands on the gun kicked off. That investigation showed the “Jamie placed the gun, which was not in a holster, under the front seat of the truck,” the statement said. “Sometime during her drive, the gun apparently slid back to the rear floorboard, below where her 4-year-old son was seated in a booster seat.”

Family members told deputies the boy had recently learned to unbuckle himself from the booster seat. “Investigators discovered the child removed himself from the seat, presumably to grab a toy from the floorboard, saw the gun, picked it up and accidentally fired through the rear of the driver seat, striking Jamie.”

How long it will take the state attorney’s office to review the case and make a recommendation on charge is unclear. If Gilt is charged, she could face up to 180 days in jail on the second-degree misdemeanor.

Photos from the Jamie Gilt for Gun Sense Facebook page