Backyard gun range ban disappoints teen injured by stray bullet

NAPLES, Fla.- Deborah Ladesma, 14, and her family say they live in a constant state of fear after the teenager was injured by a stray bullet in her Golden Gate Estates home.

“So scary, every time I close my eyes, I start thinking about that. I can’t
stop thinking about that,” said Viana Acosta, Ladesma’s mother.

It’s been almost three weeks since the teen was injured in her living room while neighbors fired guns in their backyard. Ladesma is now beginning physical therapy on her hand.

“I got shot in my own living room, I can’t believe it,” Ladesma said. “At night, I get really, really paranoid and I just can’t sleep in my room,”

The family thought their nightmare was over when Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill into
law last week, banning people from practicing shooting in densely populated neighborhoods. But the law only applies to areas that have “a residential density of one or more dwelling units per acre,” while many homes in the Golden Gate Estates area sit on larger lots.

Florida Sen. Garrett Richter sponsored the bill and says there’s no guarantees lawmakers will expand the law, something Ladesma’s family says needs to be done.

“This is a start and if it needs to be expanded on, then a future legislature can
take that up and have a debate and see where it goes to expand it,” Richter said.

Ladesma says she still hears gunshots ringing outside her home almost every day and hopes someone will step up and stop the shooting.

“I don’t want anyone else to get shot, it’s not a good feeling.”

The family says they’d like to see the law expand to include properties up to five acres.