Law enforcement experts warn of celebratory gunfire on Fourth of July

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- The sky over Southern California will light up once again as folks celebrate the Fourth of July.

However, mixed into the fireworks spectacle of bright lights and loud bangs is a hidden danger.

"When somebody goes out and fires off a magazine of 30 rounds, that's 30 opportunities for someone's life to be taken," said Jim McDonnell, former Los Angeles County sheriff.

He is talking about celebratory gunfire, the discharge of a firearm into the air.

McDonnell said authorities usually see this type of reckless and dangerous behavior on New Year's Eve, but it also happens on the Fourth of July.

"That bullet goes up, it's going to come down and it's going to come down with enough power behind it to be able to kill someone," McDonnell said. "So if they're firing a rifle for instance and they fire it on a 45 degree angle, that could potentially travel a mile or more before it comes down."

And, because of that trajectory, experts said the chance of a wound from a falling bullet being fatal is far higher than a typical shooting.

Some cities across the country are now using technology like Shotspotter to help authorities pinpoint where a shooting took place.

"It's another tool in the toolbox for the officers responding to know that they can maybe differentiate between all the fireworks that are going off on the Fourth of July and what are actual gunshots," McDonnell said.

Santa Ana Police Department Sgt. Maria Lopez said they will be fully staffed on America's birthday.

"We try to put as many bodies on deck as we can for the Fourth of July, particularly the Fourth of July," Lopez said.

She said the city doesn't use Shotspotter.

Lopez said they depend and encourage the community to call in celebratory gunfire on July Fourth.

"In 2020, we did get I believe six calls related to gunshots and then in 2021 I believe we got four calls, but again, it gets difficult to distinguish between fireworks and gunshots sometimes," Lopez said.

McDonnell said It can be hard to go after the person who pulled the trigger in a celebratory gunfire incident.

However, if caught that person could face negligent discharge of firearm charges and if convicted, up to three years in prison.