Celebratory gunfire is the shooting of afirearm into the air in celebration. Notable incidents have occurred throughout the world, even in countries where the practice is illegal.[1][2][3][4][5]
Common occasions for celebratory gunfire includeNew Year's Day as well as religious holidays.[6] The practice sometimes results in random death and injury fromstray bullets. Property damage is another result of celebratory gunfire; shattered windows and damaged roofs are sometimes found after such celebrations.[7]
Depending on the angle it is fired, the speed of a falling bullet changes. A bullet fired nearly vertically will lose the most speed,[8] usually falling atterminal velocity, which is much lower than itsmuzzle velocity. Despite this, people can still be injured or killed by bullets falling at this speed. If a bullet is fired at other angles, it maintains itsangular ballistic trajectory and is far less likely to engage in tumbling motion; it therefore travels at speeds much higher than a bullet infree fall. Dense, small bullets achieve higher terminal velocities than lighter, larger bullets.
Between 1918 and 1920,[9]United States Army Ordnance Corps'Julian Hatcher conducted experiments to determine the velocity of falling bullets,[10][11][12][13] and calculated that .30caliber rounds reach terminal velocities of90 m/s (300 feet per second or 186 miles per hour).[13][14] According to computer models, 9 mm handgun rounds reach terminal velocities of between 45 and 75 m/s (150 and 250 feet per second or 100 and 170 miles per hour).[15] A bullet traveling at only61 m/s (200 feet per second or 135 miles per hour) to100 m/s (330 feet per second or 225 miles per hour) can penetrate human skin.[16]
Any gunfire can damage hearing of those nearby without ear protection, and blank rounds fired in an unsafe direction can cause injuries or death from muzzle blast at close range, as in the case of actorJon-Erik Hexum. Birdshot fired from a shotgun disperses and loses energy much faster than slugs, buckshot, or bullets fired from rifles and pistols. Although potentially lethal for many yards at a low angle, fired at a high angle, the main risk of injury from falling "shot rain" is shot landing in the eyes and causing scratches, particularly to persons looking upwards without eye protection.
Philippine Health Secretary Francisco Duque III noted the drop in stray bullet injuries, in that country, during the 2005 year-end holiday period – from 33 cases to 19.[22]
The number of complaints regarding random shooting inDallas, Texas, on New Year's Eve declined from approximately 1,000 in 1999 to 800 each in 2001 and 2002.[7]
In early 2008, increased partisanship inLebanon led to the practice of firing celebratory gunfire in support of politicians appearing on local television, leading to multiple deaths and to calls from these leaders to end the practice.[23]
On January 7, 2008, at about 9:30 pm, aMontenegro AirlinesFokker 100 (4O-AOK) was shot at while landing atPodgorica Airport. A routine inspection of the aircraft led to the discovery of a bullet hole in the aircraft's tail. The aircraft was carrying 20 passengers, but no one was injured. The reason for the incident is unknown; however, reports indicate that it may have been an inadvertent result of guns being fired during celebrations forOrthodox Christmas.[24]
January 1, 2005: A stray bullet hit a young girl during New Year celebrations in the central square of downtownSkopje, North Macedonia. She died two days later. This incident led to the 2006IANSA awareness campaign.[6]
October 12, 2003: Wedding guests inBelgrade, Serbia mistakenly shot down a small aircraft.[25]
December 12, 2024: At least six Syrian civilians were reported to be killed as a result of celebratory gunfire following thefall of the Assad regime.[26]
April 6, 2014: A 20-year-old pregnant mother of two, Wadia Baidawi, was struck in the head and killed by a stray bullet from her neighbor's wedding inSidon, Lebanon.[29]
November 21, 2012: Following a cease-fire endingfighting with Israel, celebratory gunfire in theGaza Strip killed a man and wounded three others.[30]
October 30, 2012: Twenty-three people wereelectrocuted after celebratory gunfire brought down a power cable during a wedding party in easternSaudi Arabia.[31]
August 2010: two people were killed and 13 were injured inJordan, as part of the yearly celebration of the announcement of the result ofTawjihi.[32]
August 14, 2025: Three people were killed, including a child, and 109 others are injured, including three critically, in aerial firing accidents duringIndependence Day inKarachi, Pakistan. Authorities arrested 86 suspects and recovered 68 illegal weapons.[38][39]
November 16, 2016: A self-proclaimed godwoman and her private guards went on a celebratory shooting spree at a wedding inKarnal, inHaryana,India, killing the groom's aunt and leaving three of his relatives critically wounded.[40]
June 6, 2013: a 42-year-oldPakistani woman was killed by a stray bullet from celebratory gunfire. The gunfire was attributed to celebrations for the election ofPakistan'sprime minister Newaz Sharif. Her 19-year-old niece was also hit, and rushed to hospital in critical condition.[41]
February 25, 2007: Five people were killed by stray bullets fired at akite festival inLahore,Pakistan, including a six-year-old schoolboy who was struck in the head near his home in the city's Mazang area.[42]
December 1859: Anautopsy showed that a native inIndia, who suddenly fell dead for no apparent reason, was mortally wounded from a bullet fired from a distance too far for the shot to be heard. The falling bullet had sufficient energy to pass through the victim's shoulder, a rib, a lung, his heart and his diaphragm.[43]
In December 26, 1819, severalBugis people were on a gunfire spree to celebrate the wedding of their chief Arung Belawa happening inTanjungpinang,Penyengat Island (present-dayIndonesia). However,Dutch officials led by recently elected Resident G.E. Königsdorffer detained some of these men which escalated to the murder of five men, including a chief named Raja Ronggik. Ronggik's death led to an all-out war between the Bugis and the Dutch in January 1820, with many Bugis civilians fleeing toSingapore in the ensuing aftermath.[44]
December 31, 2023: 3-year-old Brayden Smith was with his family New Year's Eve when a bullet passed through theirMemphis, Tennessee apartment window, striking the toddler during what police believe was "celebratory gunfire." Smith was rushed to the hospital, but died around 6 am Jan. 3.[45]
January 1, 2023: Two people, a 40-year-old man and 35-year-old man, died after celebratory gunfire was discharged at a party inLawrence Township, Michigan. A 62-year-old man was arrested at the scene.[46][47]
December 31, 2021, and January 1, 2022: Multiple people inDurham, North Carolina, were struck by celebratory bullets, including one woman who was killed.[48][49] InCanton, Ohio a man firing celebratory bullets was shot and killed through his wooden fence by police.[50]
January 1, 2020: A patron who was eating dinner at The Big Catch restaurant inSt. Petersburg, Florida, on New Year's Day was struck by a celebratory bullet.[51]
December 31, 2019: InTexas, a 61-year-old nurse named Philippa Ashford was shot and killed on New Year's Eve, likely by celebratory gunfire according to police.[52]
January 1, 2017:Armando Martinez, a Texas state Representative, was wounded in the head by a stray bullet during a New Year's celebration.[53]
January 1, 2015: A 43-year-old man, Javier Suarez Rivera, was struck in his head and killed while watching fireworks with his family inHouston.[54][55]
July 4, 2013: A 7-year-old boy, Brendon Mackey, was struck in the top of his head and killed while walking with his father shortly before 9 p.m. amid a large crowd prior to the fireworks display over theSwift Creek Reservoir, outsideRichmond, Virginia.[56]
January 1, 2013: A 10-year-old girl, Aaliyah Boyer, collapsed after being struck in the back of the head while watching the neighborhoodfireworks inElkton, Maryland. She died two days later of her injuries.[57]
July 4, 2012: A 34-year-old woman, Michelle Packard, was struck in the head and killed while watching the fireworks with her family. The police believe the shot could have come from a mile away.[58]
January 1, 2010: A four-year-old boy, Marquel Peters, was struck by a bullet and killed inside his churchThe Church of God of Prophecy inDecatur, Georgia. It is presumed the bullet may have penetrated the roof of the church around 12:20AM.[59]
In March 2008, ChefPaul Prudhomme was grazed by a.22 caliber stray bullet while catering theZurich Classic of New Orleans golf tournament. He at first thought abee had stung his arm, required no serious medical attention, and within five minutes was back to cooking for the golf tournament. It was thought to have been a falling bullet.
December 28, 2005: A 23-year-old U.S. Armyprivate on leave afterbasic training fired a9mm pistol into the air in celebration with friends, according to police, one of the bullets came through a fifth-floor apartment window in theNew York City borough ofQueens, striking a 28-year-old mother of two in the eye. She was found dead by her husband within minutes of the shooting. The shooter had been drinking the night before and turned himself in to police the next morning when he heard the news. He was charged withsecond-degree manslaughter and weapons-related crimes,[60][61] and was later found guilty and sentenced to 4 to 12 years in prison.[62]
June 14, 1999:Arizona, A 14-year-old girl, Shannon Smith, was struck on the top of her head by a bullet and killed while in the backyard of her home.[63] This incident resulted in Arizona enacting "Shannon's Law" in 2000, that made the discharge of a firearm into the air illegal.
January 1, 1999: Joseph Jaskolka ofWilmington was visiting family members inPhiladelphia for New Years when he was struck in the head by a stray bullet as he walked with family members on Fernon Street headed to festivities on South 2nd Street in South Philadelphia. The incident is believed to be from gunfire celebrating the New Year. The bullet remains lodged in Jaskolka'sbrainstem and he was left paralyzed on the right side of his body due to his injury.[64]
December 31, 1994: Amy Silberman, a tourist fromBoston, was killed by a falling bullet from celebratory firing while walking on the Riverwalk in theFrench Quarter ofNew Orleans,Louisiana. The Police Department there has been striving to educate the public on the danger since then, frequently making arrests for firing into the air.[65]
July 4, 1950: Bernard Doyle was killed in his seat while attending aNew York Giants game at thePolo Grounds. The bullet was determined to have been fired by Robert Peebles, a juvenile, from an apartment building some distance away onCoogan's Bluff, presumably in celebration ofIndependence Day.[66][67][68]
InNorth Macedonia, a person found guilty of firing off a gun during celebrations faces a jail sentence of up to ten years.[6]
In Italy, under art.703 of the Penal Code (Dangerous ignitions and explosions), a person found guilty of firing a gun without permission in an inhabited place or nearby, is sentenced to a fine of up to €103, while if they commit the act in a crowded place the sentence may go as high as up to a month in prison. The law also applies to fireworks, rockets, hot air balloons and, in general, "dangerous ignitions and explosions".[18]
InPakistan,section 144 of thePakistan Penal Code is imposed to prevent aerial firing during celebrations if harm is caused, and anFIR may be registered against a person who does so. However, many cases of aerial firing go unreported.[3]
InArizona, firing a gun into the air was raised from a misdemeanor to a felony byShannon's law, in response to the death of a 14-year-old from a stray bullet in 1999.[69]
InCalifornia, discharging a firearm into the air is a felony punishable by three years in state prison. If the stray bullet kills someone, the shooter can be charged withmurder.[70][71]
InMinnesota, it is illegal to discharge a firearm over a cemetery, or at or in a public transit vehicle. Additionally, local governments may regulate the discharge of a weapon within their jurisdictions.[69]
InOhio, discharging a firearm or a deadly weapon in a public place is classified as disorderly conduct, a Class B misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.[72]
InTexas, random gunfire is a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by a maximum one year in jail and $4,000 fine. Anyone who injures or kills someone with a stray bullet could face more serious felony charges.[7]
InWisconsin, criminal charges for this type of offense range from "endangering safety by use of a dangerous weapon" to "recklesshomicide" in the event of a death, with penalties ranging from nine months to 25 years in prison."[73]
Usingpig carcasses, they worked out the terminal velocity of a falling bullet and had a mixed result, answering the question with all three of the show's possible outcomes: Confirmed, Plausible and Busted.[74] They tested falling bullets by firing them from both ahandgun and arifle, by firing them from anair gun designed to propel them at terminal velocity, and by dropping them in the desert from an instrumented balloon.
They found that while bullets traveling on a perfectly vertical trajectory tumble on the way down, creating turbulence that reduces terminal velocity below that which would kill, it was very difficult to fire a bullet in this near-ideal vertical trajectory. In practice, bullets were likely to remain spin-stabilized on a ballistic trajectory and fall at a potentially lethal terminal velocity. They also verified cases of actual deaths from falling bullets.[75]
^abThe Ballistician (March 2001)."Bullets in the Sky". W. Square Enterprises, 9826 Sagedale, Houston, Texas 77089. Archived fromthe original on March 31, 2008.
^Abdul-Alim, Jamaal (December 29, 2005)."JS Online: Hold the gunfire".Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Archived fromthe original on February 8, 2007. RetrievedAugust 1, 2007.
