So what's the difference between both adults and father and mother? Were they not the only adults in the car?

Both to blame, but simple blame is one thing, guilty of a crime if charged would be more difficult to prove I suppose. Depends on the laws of the state, I suppose. Neglect and blame for all around for the 3 adults mentioned in my opinion.

No need to ask more questions now. Ask later. Throw parents in jail each time a kid is hurt with negligence or the kid hurts anyone else. Everything will get better. Freedom has gone overboard. Change the freaking laws.

These kids will go on to seek online counseling when they grow up.... if they survive the messed up childhood.

Why our society cannot figure what family is? Why this is not in front pages and headline news? Why this isn't terribly shaking the nation's conscience?

We have shiny buildings and the largest economy but I have seen we don't have a soul. We don't know the soul of a society is family, not the church yo.. fucked up parents.

The father is immediate the guilty party. The NRA and Congress have blood on their hands for allowing America to be flooded with easily obtainable firearms by people not qualified to own firearms. Like this father.

Taking it past blaming, who would I prosecute?

All adults assuming all knew the unsecured gun was available to a youngster. Anyone who did not know a gun was in the car can not be held responsible.

The presence of cannabis is a red herring. The intended implication is that the mother and her friend weren't paying attention. One cannot give children 100% attention. It's a reasonable assumption they didn't know about the gun until it was too late. That should put responsibility back on the father for not securing the gun.

While cannabis drivers are generally safe, authorities continue to presume that using cannabis is the same as intoxication. Having children in a car while smoking is a bad idea because law enforcement will be hostile to that scene.

Insane

I voted Mother and Father…but actually the whole gun culture, lax rules around sale of guns, and ease of purchase and ownership of guns, in the USA are all contributory factors.

At present the U.K. is run by a clown and his cabinet of spineless sycophants, and a cabinet office of party animals in Number 10 who believe the rules they make only apply to us and not to them. The Metropolitan police seems to be filled with misogynistic, sadistic and racist officers and are led by an incompetent commissioner who should resign along with the PM,, but like Boris she won’t. Worst of all the Met commissioner gives all the appearance of being in the government’s pocket. In short we are currently the laughing stock of the world.

However, for all that, we don’t have to worry about lunatics and halfwits owning and discharging guns all over the place and massacring our children …so on balance I think I’d rather live here on this side of the pond.