An Ohio high school is raffling off an AR-15 rifle and other guns to raise money for its athletics department — just days after a shooter killed three kids in Nashville, Tenn., with a nearly identical weapon.
The ill-timed announcement Wednesday by Upper Sandusky High Schoolâs track department said it had sold all 500 $10 tickets for a chance to win four powerful firearms, sparking outrage, VICE News reported.
Guns touted in the drawing include a Savage 93R17 bolt-action rifle with scope, a Mossberg Patriot 350 Legend, two Tisas 1911 handguns, and an AR-15 rifle â similar to the one school shooter Audrey Hale had when she massacred three children and three adults Monday.
Some locals were infuriated by what they called a tone-deaf, dangerous and âidioticâ endorsement of gun culture by school reps.
âNothing says âI support trackâ like a shiny new murder gun,â Nick Barnes, an Upper Sandusky food truck owner, fumed on Facebook.
âWhen I first saw this, I thought it was an April Foolâs joke,â another resident said of the gun-boosting raffle.
âWhatever happened to normal raffles, like sporting event tickets, gift cards to local establishments,â the local continued.
âNope, an AR-15. Maybe it will make the [track] kids run faster? So, so disturbing.â
âOur society is so diseased,â another observer wrote.
Others in the rural area near Columbus defended the personal use of automatic rifles.
Hale, 28, was armed with an AR-15-style weapon and two other guns when she massacred three 9-year-old kids and three staffers at the Covenant School before cops gunner her down.
The AR-15 semi-automatic has also been used in many of Americaâs most deadly mass shootings â including the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Fla., and the Route 91 Harvest music festival shooting in Las Vegas in 2017.
Upper Sanduskyâs gun raffle was announced in a March 15 Facebook post by Tim Pohlman, one of the schoolâs track and field coaches.
âThe Track moms have put together a gun raffle to raise money for the team this year. The profits will go towards getting needed equipment for the program,â Pohlman wrote.
âLet myself or a member on our team know if you want to get in on the fun and support our Upper Sandusky Track team.â
The funds will go toward buying carts for transporting track hurdles, he said.
The Upper Sandusky school district superintendent didnât immediately return an inquiry Thursday from The Post.
Pohlman didnât return VICEâs request for comment.
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