Wilfredo Lee / AP
A sign warning Fourth of July revelers to not shoot guns in the air is shown in the median of a street, Tuesday, July 2, 2019, in North Miami, Fla.
Thursday, July 2, 2020 | 6:10 p.m.
Referencing people who blast bullets into the air, Metro Police is warning Clark County residents to put their guns away during their Fourth of July festivities because of the old adage of “what goes up must come down.”
The rounds that fall “have a trajectory that can cause a lot of damage and even eventually kill someone,” said Deputy Chief James Seebok in a news release.
Metro is reporting a 20% increase in illegal shootings reported to 911, and the ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology has seen numbers spike four-fold in the past month.
Gunshots fired into the air often torpedo down to strike roofs, cars and other property, police said. Getting caught by the law can lead to a year in jail, and that’s if someone isn’t wounded.
“If illegal gunfire calls continue to rise during the Fourth of July weekend, it could overwhelm emergency service personnel dealing with other incidents related to the holiday weekend such as drinking, domestic disturbances, and crime,” police said in the release.
Police also warned the community that airborne fireworks are illegal and advised reporting them at ispyfireworks.com instead of 911.
