Conservative newspaper columnist killed after gun he was showing teen goes off [View all]

A conservative newspaper columnist known for his support of guns rights died after the pistol he was showing a teenager suddenly fired.

Michael D. Harmon, who wrote weekly for the Portland Press Herald, died at 71 Wednesday after what his wife called an “accidental tragedy.”

Police told the Press Herald that a 16-year-old and his father were visiting Harmon at his home in Sanford when he was showing the boy a handgun and it went off.

The newspaper said that he was an editor and columnist known as a “steadfast defender of gun rights” during his 41 years at the Press Herald and Maine Sunday Telegram.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/columnist-killed-gun-showing-teen-article-1.2927982