A flying bullet struck a woman outside her home in Loudoun County, Virginia, Sunday afternoon while residents were target shooting on a farm nearby, authorities say.
The woman, who did not want to be identified, told News4 she was hit as she was hurrying her children into the house on Gable Farm Lane in Hamilton, Virginia.
A group of men and women were shooting toward a "natural berm" about 3:30 p.m. when one of their bullets struck the woman several hundred yards away, the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office said.
The bullet grazed the woman's shoulder and she didn't require any medical treatment, deputies said.
Deputies seized four weapons from the farm where the group was shooting and investigators will try to determine who fired the errant shot.
A sign at the entrance to the farm reads "No Trespassing. Sniper on Duty."
The shooting isn't the first of its kind in Loudoun County. In May 2018, bullets fired from an outdoor shooting area hit three homes in Aldie. About three months later, some residents near Leesburg found bullet holes in the walls of their homes.
Local
Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia local news, events and information
More stray bullets hit one home during a baby shower in Oct. 2018.
Some residents called on Loudoun County officials to consider revising the ordinance governing shooting.
The ordinance — last revised in 2013 — permits all types of shooting in the more rural, western part of Loudoun County with some restrictions: No shooting within 50 yards of a highway or 100 yards of a park, school or occupied building, like a home.
The sheriff's office says the target shooters in Sunday's incident were outside the require 100 yards from a home, but they still could face charges.
"It's a reckless discharge of a firearm if you are not taking into account any residents that are nearby and anybody that might be able to get hit by an errant round," Sheriff Mike Chapman told News4.
