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Bullet Strikes Lutz Woman During Temple Terrace Fireworks

Temple Terrace Police are investigating the incident.

 

Temple Terrace Police have confirmed that the object that struck a Lutz woman at the Temple Terrace Golf & Country Club during the annual fireworks display was a bullet.

According to Sgt. Mike Lowell, someone fired the bullet into the air and it came down onto Laura Ann Kaatze’s leg. Police don’t know where the bullet originated.

“It’s an open investigation,” Lowell said.

Police initially said they were unsure about what actually struck Kaatze. Lowell said she was taken to Florida Hospital Tampa where doctors determined the object.

According to a 10 News story, Kaatze is recovering at home, but the bullet remains lodged in her thigh. Kaatze was holding her 7-year-old son in her lap when the bullet struck her. He did not sustain any injuries.

Temple Terrace Police and spectators crowded around Kaatze Wednesday night after the fireworks display. There appeared to be blood on her leg and in a folding chair next to her. Police officers brushed their hands on the chair and the ground, presumably to determine what might have struck her. A stretcher was wheeled over as Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) members asked the crowd to disperse.

Kaatze wasn’t the only person to suffer an injury from a falling bullet July 4. According to Clearwater Patch, a 74-year-old man had a bullet go through his cap, nose, lip and chin as he watched fireworks at Safety Harbor Spa and Marina.

Related Topics: 4th of July, Fireworks, Independence Day, July 4, Laura Ann Kaatze, Temple Terrace Independence Day celebration, Temple Terrace Police, and bullet

Carmen

11:30 am on Friday, July 6, 2012

WHAT IS WRONG WITH PEOPLE??? A family can't even go to a fireworks display without fear of getting shot???

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SHARON ALVAREZ

11:45 am on Friday, July 6, 2012

Unbelievable! Do we need a security check to attend these events now? Thank God she's okay. Sharon A.

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Quentin

12:15 pm on Friday, July 6, 2012

You have it wrong, some dufuss shot his gun in the air somewhere away from the event and when it came down it struck her. she was not shot at. In St. pete they have over 50 holes in the Tropicana from bullets returning to earth from morons who shoot off their guns.

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Susan Scully

12:31 pm on Friday, July 6, 2012

Didn't anyone learn from the kid who got struck by a bullet returning to ground on New Year's Eve? That kid was in the hospital for weeks and will never be the same. Moron is the perfect name for those shooters. Too bad thebullets don't come back and strike the shooter!

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Thin blue line

6:47 am on Saturday, July 7, 2012

It happens every year. It is more common than we would like to admit. A bullet shot into the air can travel several miles before it comes back to earth. With the bullet lodged in her leg, there is no possibility of finding the shooter. Even with the bullet removed, those chances would be remote. It is tragic that anyone was injured, but a blessing that her 7 year old was unharmed.

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