Texas Man Accidentally Shot Grandson At Wedding in Nebraska

You hear Texas referred to as the wild, wild west rather often. Usually, it's by people who don't live here, but sometimes we Texans do things that don't exactly take away that label. This is one of those things.

The setting is a wedding in Nebraska involving a man and his grandson from Midland. You know, a day of ultimate joy for the happy couple and their families.

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The wedding was running about 45 minutes behind, which can happen from time to time. Because of the delay, people had left their seats and started milling around the venue talking to one another.

Well, the man (who was the officiant) for the wedding needed to get the attention of the guests, and when people get spread out, it can be difficult to get everyone's attention at the same time. So he decided to do something a bit unorthodox, but very Texas.

Unsplash via Jay Rembert (Not actual handgun from story)

Michael Gardner reached down and pulled out his gun. He decided the best way to get everyone's attention would be to fire a shot into the sky and in his words, "start the wedding off with a bang".

Well, a bang he got it started with...and almost tragedy to go with it.

As the story goes, Gardner had a blank in the gun, filled up with black powder and sealed shut with some glue. As he went to go and cock the gun, it slipped and the gun fired the blank.

His 12-year-old grandson was standing next to him at the time, and the blank hit the child directly in his left shoulder, causing an injury to the child. He had to be taken to the emergency room to be treated for injuries.

The wedding DID go on, the couple got married, and Gardner was not arrested at the wedding. Chief Sheriff Ben Houchin of the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office said Gardner was not arrested at the wedding because they didn't feel the public was in danger and it was accidental in nature.

Gardner has since turned himself in to the Lancaster County Sheriff's Office on charges of felony child abuse for neglectingly shooting a firearm. Just happy that the child is ok.