And People Wonder Why I get Angry…

So there are some ranges that evidently aren’t as anal as they should be regarding handling of firearms while the range is cold and people are down range.  As I’ve said before, this really ticks me off and today we have an example of the consequences.

Cromer said the boy was there with his father and another family member. They were checking on their targets when the shooting occurred.

He said several firearms were on a bench when a woman moved them and that’s when the revolver discharged, hitting the boy in the lower abdomen.

There are so many things wrong with that second sentence.

• First, prior to anyone heading down range, all actions should be open and empty.  In the case of a revolver, the cylinder should be out and easily visible.
• Second, While people are down range there should be absolutely no handling of firearms.  Odds are you will not be able to touch our move a firearm without muzzling someone so just leave it alone.
• Third, usually there is a yellow safety line that now one is allowed in front of during a cease fire, why was someone in front of it, or why didn’t this range have one?
• Fourth, How do you cause a revolver to discharge buy merely moving it unless it was loaded and cocked, them maybe, but even then, booger hook bang switch problem here.

There are no excuses for this incident. The bottom line is this issue can be traced back to at a minimum of impatience while wanting to pack up and leave.  At best it is gross negligence without using the most important tool to man kind, the grey matter between the ears.

h/t Uncle.

*Update* Evidently this is an unsupervised range.  I’ve seen my share of incidents at unsupervised ranges and am not the biggest fan.  Like Wizard, I won’t go to one by myself. Either I or my companion stay at the line and act as an RO.  The only reason cowboy rules like that go on is because no one steps up to the plate.  The results of no one stepping up can be seen above.

TMM

TMM is the owner, editor, and principal author at The Minuteman, a competitive shooter, and staff member for Boomershoot. Even in his free time he’s merging his love and knowledge of computers and technology with his love of firearms.

Many know his private name and information however due to the current political climate, many are distancing themselves due to the abandonment of Due Process.