Re-enactor Is Indicted in Shooting of a Yankee

NY Times ^ | January 18, 2009 | RALPH BLUMENTHAL

[Pharmboy]

John C. Jobe
Thomas Lord, 73, in his Union
uniform during a Civil War
re-enactment.

The mysterious shooting of a would-be Yankee cavalryman from the Bronx during the filming of a Civil War re-enactment in Virginia in September has been solved, according to the authorities, with the indictment of a latter-day Johnny Reb who, they say, accidentally fired a .44-caliber ball from an 1860 Army Colt pistol that was supposed to be empty.

The shot wounded Thomas Lord, a 73-year-old former New York City police officer from Suffolk, Va., and a bluecoat with the Seventh New York Volunteer Cavalry.

snip..

The suspect, Josh O. Silva, 29, of Norfolk, Va., was armed and in costume as an unofficial walk-on in the re-enactment. He was identified with the help of movie footage...snip

Mr. Silva was indicted on Monday on the charge of “reckless handling of a firearm,” said Wayne Farmer, the county attorney. The charge is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine.

“No one is alleging ill will or that anyone acted intentionally,” said Mr. Farmer, snip...

“If I had any idea that Mr. Silva had fired intentionally at another person, it would be a much more serious charge,” Mr. Farmer said.

Asked why Mr. Silva had not turned himself in after the shooting, Sheriff Phelps said: “He wasn’t sure he did it. He didn’t know he’d shot anyone.” He attributed delays in the investigation to recent turnovers in the county attorney’s office.

Mr. Farmer said that Mr. Silva was not a member of an organized re-enactment group but showed up in Confederate grays and joined the event, evidently unaware of rules strictly forbidding loaded weapons.

[Pharmboy]

Hard for me to buy his story "I didn't know you couldn't bring loaded weapons to a re-enactment..."

[billorites]

I believe that many more reenactors die as a result of disease rather than battle injuries.

[Pharmboy]

Random non-ping list...

[ClearCase_guy]

As some have predicted, the Second Civil War has begun!

[Pharmboy]

Yeah...diabetes, hypertension and atherosclerosis.

[Pharmboy]

Yep...equal to the shot at Fort Sumter.

[mainepatsfan]

I’m reminded of the scene in the movie “Gettysburg” when a Confederate officer fires his pistol at Chamberlain only to discover the chamber was empty. Good thing they didn’t cast this genius in that roll.

[JimSEA]

My wife recognized this incident from a Rita Mae Brown Mystery she read a year or two back. Of course the novel had the shooting as an intentional attempt to kill. LOL

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

The suspect, Josh O. Silva, 29, of Norfolk, Va., was armed and in costume as an unofficial walk-on in the re-enactment.

H3erein lies the problem. As a former CW reenactor with over 10 years of experience (both as an infantryman and officer), these unaffiliated walk-ons (along with the "yahoo" independent groups) are generally a menace to everyone involved. As a hobby, CW reenacting is generally well-organized with standing battalions and established chains of command on both sides. Nearly all of the major reenactments forbid "walk-ons" and unaffiliated units just for the reasons cited in this story. Sounds like this guy just walked on in unchallenged by anybody, fell in with some careless group, and accidentally shot the Union reenactor. Not good for the hobby since it will mean even higher insurance bills, more stringent safety inspections, and more paperwork for orderly sergeants and the adjutants.

[Shooter 2.5]

It’s been my experience from 1977-1989 that very few confederate reenactors knew how to shoot.

Hardly any of the confederates could shoot their muskets during the live fire shooting events. They would show up with the wrong sized bullets, bad percussion caps and rusty guns.

They were always a lot of fun though. While the Northern guys would be at the military ball on Saturday night, the southern boys treated it like an all night drunk.

I’ll have more fun with a good old boy with his barely eighteen year old girlfriend over a Northern stick in the mud “officer” any day.

[politicalmerc]

So they are still having casualties in the civil war.......

[AnAmericanMother]

Yep, we talked about this when the story first surfaced.

I think we agreed that this would prove to be an unaffiliated idiot that was hired as an extra or just showed up.

Since this was a filming and not a regular re-enactment, he may well have been the responsibility of the producers and not any re-enactment group. But THEY will be lying low because this looks like a jolly opportunity for a lawsuit, and Josh O. Silva, 29, of Norfolk, Va., probably doesn't have any assets worth mentioning.

[AnAmericanMother]

Dang, the urban and suburban culture must be taking its toll on the Old South.

When I was growing up (admittedly that is getting longer ago all the time), EVERY Southern boy knew how to shoot, and a good number of Southern girls (my dad had a .22 rifle in my hands at the age of 7).

[DJ Taylor]

OK, how long before the NYT runs a front page demand from Sarah Brady calling for the ban of Colt 1860 Army cap and ball revolvers?

[Shooter 2.5]

Reenacting is a different environment. Mostly it’s a time to party and raise a little hell for the southern boys.

While the Northern troops polished their brass and shined their shoes, the Southerners looked like they were over a hundred years old by the wear and tear. Their muskets looked the same.

I did see the same attitude on one person. He had a brand new AR-15 and he practically dropped it into the back of a rusty pickup truck bed. I never let my guns down until they’re back in the foam lined gun case. I was horrified by his disregard for the finish. He didn’t care. It was going to be his truck gun. I’ll bet in a couple of months, it wouldn’t have any finish on it at all.

[AnAmericanMother]

I suppose you could see it as an added attempt at authenticity, since the Confederate troops were by and large not what you could call big on spit and polish -

I had 3 gg grandfathers in, and judging from their letters the brass and the shoes were not high on their priorities list (if they could FIND any - Grandpa Long wrote home that he had managed to find a pair of shoes made for a 15 year old boy that he thought he could make fit . . . )

[AnAmericanMother]

I have a couple of nice rifles that live in their own cases and only get shot occasionally, but by and large everything we have is a shooter and they do tend to get rubs, scratches, etc. on them. Cowboy action and still hunting in the woods take their toll on finish - even just the rubbing of the barrel against the felt in the gun cart leaves a visible mark.

I don't drop guns in truck beds, though! My truck gun is an old Savage .30-30, and the exterior finish IS rough (it's about 50 years old) although the operating parts and barrel are in very good condition.

I tell my friends "I keep no cats that catch no mice."

[Shooter 2.5]

Exactly right. I do remember the account when someone remarked about confederate troops. They stated their muskets were in good shape but the rest was in dire need of repair.

There’s a huge difference between decent used wear and abuse which is what I saw from the southern reenactors.

IDPA wears out the finish on the blued guns. I started buying stainless but High Powers only come in blue or nickeled.

[AnAmericanMother]

I have a stainless Combat Commander that is pretty darn near pristine despite being my carry gun for years.

Of course it didn't get much use, just holster rubs . . . .

But the cowboy guns are all blued finish, and there's a broad dull spot on my '93 where it rides around in the gun cart. Not to mention just dings, bangs, scratches and all the rest of it. But the quantity of shooting you do in one cowboy match is probably more lead than any real cowboy put down the barrel in his entire lifetime.

[Shooter 2.5]

I thought I would get into cowboy action after I dropped CW reenacting but I would have traded one wool outfit for another.

I’m in shorts and a T-shirt for IDPA so I think I’ll stay with that.

Also the ladies are in shorts and T-shirts.