Fireworks shot off at vice mayor’s home
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There were plenty of illegal fireworks set off around the county the past weekend, some from unexpected places.
Vice Mayor Jason Kouts told a Safford Police officer he allowed people at his house to set off bottle rockets on the Fourth of July. Possession of fireworks by private citizens is illegal in Arizona.
Police responded to Kouts’ residence after a report of possible gunshots in the vicinity.
According to a Safford Police report, Kouts said no one was shooting any guns, but several people at his house had set off bottle rockets, a type of firework. The report states Kouts told the officer he allowed his children to set them off as well.
When questioned by the Courier, Kouts denied saying he allowed his children to set off the fireworks, but admitted people were firing off bottle rockets at his house.
“We did have bottle rockets, but there was bottle rockets being shot off all around the area,” Kouts said. “I didn’t say anything about my children shooting them off. As far as me and my family, we did not purchase any fireworks. They (visitors) just brought them to my house – Black Caps and stuff like that.”
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 9,000 fireworks-related injuries occur each year. The commission reported 30 percent of all injuries were to the eye, mostly due to bottle rockets. One-fourth of fireworks eye injuries cause permanent vision loss or blindness.
“There is nothing worse than a Fourth of July celebration ruined by someone being hit in the eye with a bottle rocket,” said Dr. John C. Hagan, an ophthalmologist from Kansas City. “The most serious injuries are blunt trauma to the eye from bottle rockets. The rockets fly erratically, often injuring bystanders.”
Injuries from bottle rockets can include eyelid lacerations, corneal abrasions, traumatic cataract, retinal detachment, optic nerve damage, rupture of the eyeball, eye muscle damage and blindness.
According to Safford Police Chief John Griffin, Safford responded to 12 calls relating to fireworks between July 1-6; Thatcher responded to four, and Graham County responded to 19. Griffin, Thatcher Police Chief Mark Stevens and Graham County Sheriff Frank Hughes reported no citations were issued for possession of illegal fireworks.
Griffin said a lot of times the perpetrators left the fireworks behind so there was no one to be cited; other times officers just confiscated the fireworks and let those who had them be on their way.
He said he wasn’t aware of any fireworks confiscated from Kouts’ residence and had yet to interview the responding officer and vice mayor about the situation.
Hughes said the county receives a lot of calls for fireworks around the Fourth of July, but by the time deputies arrive at the location the perpetrators are gone.
Griffin previously told the Courier that his department would cite anyone caught with fireworks.
“If we catch them, we’ll cite them,” he said.
Citations for possessing fireworks include a fine and possible jail time.
Last year, a man was issued a citation for possession of illegal fireworks by Safford Police after a bottle rocket he set off lit a small fire near the Pepsi plant.
