"It was a weekday, and the game started at 6 p.m. It was a perfect spring evening. The field was one of several that mark a grassy strip nestled between the Potomac River and a wooded area that leads to the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal path. It's a popular area for walking, biking, fishing and boating. It probably looked exactly like the sports games you attend with your children."
"They asked if they could explore beneath the bridge, where the large concrete foundation blocks held the legs of the structure. My first instinct was to say "no." I am an anxious mother, so my first instinct is always "no." I paused for a beat. I glanced at the rectangular concrete feet of the bridge, knowing that my energetic child was hoping to scramble atop them."
In spring 2024, an 8-year-old boy and his 9-year-old cousin found a discarded, loaded handgun while playing along the outer edge of a ball field. The children were at a soccer game with about 60 elementary-aged kids and families present. The field sat between the Potomac River and a wooded area near the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal path. The mother initially hesitated but allowed the children to explore beneath a bridge. The children climbed onto concrete bridge supports and discovered the gun in damp dirt, suggesting someone had tossed it over the guardrail.
Read at BuzzFeed
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