Sheriff concludes shooting-range injury of TV reporter at Lucas Kunce event was an accident

By Jason Hancock

Missouri Independent

A law enforcement investigation of the circumstances surrounding a television reporter being hit by a bullet fragment at a campaign photo op for Democrat Lucas Kunce earlier this month has determined there was “no malice, nor ill intent” by anyone involved.

(Photo- Lucas Kunce applies first aid to KSHB reporter Ryan Gamboa after a bullet fragment ricocheted off a target and struck him in the arm while former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger looks on- Lucas Kunce for Missouri).

The case was also reviewed by the local prosecutor, who decided no charges would be filed, according to the incident report filed by the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office.

Kunce, a Marine veteran hoping to unseat Republican U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley, was holding an event at a shooting range near Kansas City with former U.S. Rep. Adam Kinzinger, an Illinois Republican. While shooting AR-15 rifles, a bullet fragment ricocheted off a metal target and struck KSHB-TV reporter Ryan Gamboa in the arm.

According to the incident report, after receiving first aid from Kunce, Gamboa sought treatment at a local hospital and was told he had a small piece of metal under his skin. Gamboa told the sheriff’s office he was advised by hospital staff to leave it there.

It’s unclear, according to the incident report, who fired the bullet that ultimately hit Gamboa. But Kinzinger told the sheriff’s office that after shooting “various weapons, from handguns to AR-15 rifles,” he stopped while Kunce “was shooting the last few rounds of the magazine.”

That’s when Kinzinger said he became aware that Gamboa was bleeding from his arm. Kinzinger believes it was “a fragment from a .233 round,” the incident report says.

The event carried on after first aid was administered to Gamboa, the report states, with participants continuing to shoot at the targets. After Kunce left he notified the sheriff’s office of the incident.

A spokesperson for Kunce’s campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

 
As the race for Missouri’s U.S. Senate seat enters its final days, Hawley has hammered Kunce over the shooting range incident, mocking him on social media and releasing a television ad saying he “can’t shoot straight” and calling him a “reckless liberal.”

Adding fuel to that criticism are complaints by gun experts who say the set up for the photo op was unsafe because the metal targets were too close to safely fire AR-15 rifles. The sheriff’s deputy who looked into the incident inspected the scene and determined the targets were only “10 paces, approximately 10 yards” from where Kunce and Kinzinger were shooting.