Police say gunshot death was an accident

Springfield police did not release the name of the 38-year-old man who died Wednesday night at his home.

http://www.benningtonbanner.com/ci_14760033?source=most_viewed

Police Chief Douglas Johnson says the man had just bought the pistol and was showing it to two or three people when it went off. Johnston says he doesn't know why the gun fired.

How about: He put his finger into the trigger guard and pulled the trigger while the gun was pointed at something he didn't really want to shoot. Modern guns do not "just go off".

idiot, no, let me rephrase that, he's an idiot with a deceased wife now and the rest of hos life to ponder what he did because of ignorance

If you're going to get a gun take a f'ing safety course.

I believe gun accidents and misuse could be reduced by 99% if there were adequate training requirements, a concept which is no more imposing than the requirement for driver training prior to issuing a driver license.

To allow someone to take possession of a firearm with no prior familiarization or training is simply reckless and should not be permitted. There should be some sort of test, both written and practical demonstration at a certified range.

The problem is that in the past, some authorities of a prohibitionist bent have exploited such requirements to impose a de facto ban, or at least near-ban, by such expedients as scheduling the training and tests at inconvenient times, places, without adequate prior notice, or simply not holding them at all. In principle, the tactics are very similar to those used by anti-choice politicians to finagle de facto abortion bans by means of "reasonable" measures like parental notification requirements, "cooling off" periods, refusal clauses and the like.

When you're faced with an opponent who will try to take a mile if given an inch, the obvious response is to refuse to give an inch. Which is why both the NRA and NARAL are so intransigent about even seemingly reasonable restrictions.

But there is no reason why safeguards against such maneuvering by anti-gun interests cannot be written into legislation for competence test provisions. I'm talking about specific language to impede any deliberate inconveniences while ensuring availability within reasonable distance to any location, etc.

As with driver licensing a fee would be imposed for testing and certification, so the cost would not be borne entirely, if at all, by government.

What do you think?

If historical lessons are anything to go by, some sheriff or police chief will try to circumvent such safeguards, and the only way to put a stop to it will be to file a civil suit, and it'll probably take an appeal or two to settle that satisfactorily.

US army soldier here. We treat all discharges of a weapon as either A) righteous (if you want a rundown on our current rules of engagement I can do that for you elsewhere) B)criminal (if you fired and its found you violated the ROE) or C) negligent.

If you are in possesion of a weapon it is mandatory that you know the operation of that weapon and how to do things like engage the safety, load, unload and clear that weapon.

there is no excuse for these incidents

that people who can, for the most part, operate highly energetic complex machinery with dozens of controls and switches, within inches of hundreds of others doing the same, all at variable but high rates of speed, can get so stupid and careless with a device that contains, at the most, 5 to 6 levers and/or buttons and one safety zone.


It's to bad those people don't take themselves out at an early age, before they can pass on their genetics.

:thumbsup: :rofl:

that Keith Olbermann would recount an "accident" like this every few days --- perhaps five incidents in all. The clear point of all of this "reporting" was twofold: to paint gun owners as ignorant yahoos, and to reinforce the bogus belief among many of his viewers that guns can just "go off". It was transparent beyond belief, but of course his fellow haters just lapped it up.

I also recall a comment made during all of the tea party ruccus by a commentator along the lines of......."It's just a matter of time before one of those guns goes off". Sigh.