Deputies: Pro-Gun Mom Shot In Back By 4-Year-Old Son

PALATKA, FL — The 31-year-old founder of a Facebook community for 2nd Amendment rights supporters remained hospitalized Wednesday, one day after being accidentally shot in the back by her 4-year-old son.

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

It remains unclear how the 4-year-old got his hands on a loaded .45 caliber handgun.

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 recent 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.

Gilt's page was taken down Wednesday afternoon after news about the shooting reached an international audience. Before the community was taken down, Gilt had 765 followers.

Gilt is also a Twitter user. Her profile photo there shows her holding a shotgun and a small child, presumably her son.

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The sheriff's office became aware of the shooting when one of its deputies spotted spotted Gilt's truck and horse trailer stopped partially in the travel lanes of Rowland Avenue, the sheriff's office said in a media release. As the deputy slowed to see what was going on, he noticed the driver motioning as if she needed help.

“The deputy ran to the vehicle and quickly determined that the driver had been shot,” a sheriff’s office press release said.

The deputy provided first aid and called paramedics, the agency noted. The only other occupant of the vehicle was the woman’s 4-year-old son, who was unharmed.

“Before being transported to the emergency room, the victim told deputies that her son had accidentally shot her,” the release said. “Detectives and the analysis of the crime scene confirmed that the victim was accidentally shot by the young boy who was sitting in the back of the vehicle.”

As of Wednesday, deputies had been unable to conduct a second interview with the woman due to her medical condition.

“Our investigation has revealed that the firearm was legally owned by the victim and the child came to possess the firearm without the victim’s knowledge,” the agency has concluded. As to whether or not the mother will face misdemeanor charges for failing to properly secure a firearm out of reach of a child remains under investigation, the agency noted.

The Putnam Sheriff’s Office last reported Gilt was in stable condition at a Gainesville hospital. The agency says it is unsure just when detectives will have a chance to interview her again.

Gilt’s son has been released into the custody of family, the sheriff’s office noted.

Photos from the Jamie Gilt for Gun Sense Facebook page