Countywide : Family ‘Horrified’ at Girl’s Shooting

The family of the 8-year-old girl who was struck by an apparently stray bullet while riding a train at Disneyland said through their attorney Tuesday that they are concerned for the safety of others at the park.

At the press conference, held in front of UCI Medical Center in Orange where Nayeli Placentia was released Tuesday after having a bullet removed from her back, attorney Byron Lane said the family was “greatly horrified as to the tragedy that has happened.”

He said they have expressed “their concern as to the safety of all individuals attending Disneyland and in the Southern California area from these type of gunshot wounds.”

Lane also said the family wished to “thank all of those who expressed their concern and support.”

The shooting occurred about 6 p.m. Sunday while Nayeli was riding in an open-sided car on the Disneyland Railroad in the Fantasyland section of the park.

A hole apparently made by the bullet was found on the canvas top of the train car. Police believe the bullet was fired from outside the theme park.

The incident was the second apparently random firing of a weapon that weekend. Sheriff’s deputies arrested a Stanton man on Saturday for allegedly shooting a pistol into the air.

Authorities said random shootings used to occur only during holidays but have spread to become a year-round threat. “They can occur at any time,” said Santa Ana Police Lt. Robert Helton. “It’s rare that somebody reports that they were injured, but it’s not rare that people are shooting into the air.”

Helton said that people have been known to fire handguns into the air during special celebrations, drunkenness, testing new weapons or target practice.

Law enforcement officials say random shootings are among the most difficult to solve. Helton said that officers rarely see the crime take place and that when they arrive at the scene of the shootings, the gunman has already ceased firing and fled.