Three Bullets

For those of you new to the experience that is me, I spend most of my work time fixing beach houses.

There was a party at a beach house this past weekend and someone decided it would be a good idea to start shooting.  This was a 21st birthday party.  I know this because everyone was either thrown out of the house or arrested promptly after the shooting and the birthday items were left behind alone with the ton of empty booze bottles, some clothes (including a set of hot lavender, stripper pumps), and general trash.

No one was injured by the gunfire.  Since I was one of the guys doing repairs I got to see the damage.  Three bullets were fired from the street into the house.  This is easily deduced by the entry and exit damage in the various walls, and the angles in which these holes line up.  I have some theories as to the order in which the bullets struck the house (I think they were fired from a vehicle driving away, but that's my speculation.), but I'll just discuss the damage caused.

The first bullet struck the railing around the second floor deck.  All the bullets were grouped in this area, so the shooter seemed to be aiming at someone or something specific.  The bullet went through the wood railing and then went through a wood shutter, and then the wall behind it entering the house.  It came into a bedroom near the corner and with the angle of fire entered another wall.  There's a set of stairs on the opposite side of the wall and bullet was stopped there.  So, one hole in a railing, one pierced shutter, two holes in the interior walls.

Our next bullet entered the same bedroom through the window.  It crossed the room and grazed the door to the bathroom and then pierced a bathroom wall entering the closet to the bedroom.  The bullet then was stopped by the opposing wall of the closet.  One broken window, one damaged door, one hole in the bathroom, and two in the closet.

The final bullet was the real winner.  It pierced a different wooden shutter on its way in.  It crossed the bedroom and pierced a wall to enter that previously mentioned closet.  It crossed the closet to pierce the wall and enter another bedroom.  The bedroom had a sliding, glass door which had to be open because the bullet traveled outside, and with much of its velocity stripped by going through three walls landed the backyard of the property behind the house.  Now, as the bullet traveled through the bedroom wall into the closet, it hit a water line.  Remember, this is the second floor.  The reclaimed hardwood floor is damaged.  The there's probably going to be new carpet installed.  The ceiling on the first floor in destroyed.  The very nice pool table is damaged.  Six holes and a whole lot of damage.

This may be heading for five figures.  Its a very nice house.

The person who rented the house was not present.  Seems they rented it so the birthday person could have fun with their friends.

Let this be a lesson.  People are going to party on their 21st birthday (unless you're me because my 21st birthday was lame), but if you think its a good idea to yet someone have a huge party on your dime and you're not going to be there, you're just asking for trouble.  The person who rented that house is on the hook for the bill, unless they find the shooter, and even then this doesn't look good for the renter at all.

They certainly aren't getting their deposit back.