Gotta love Canada. The land where RCMP constables commit crimes with impunity, crimes that would garner any mere citizen with a lengthy prison sentence. Take, as today's example, the case of RCMP Constable Andy Yung. For his crime, firing his service pistol and launching a round through the ceiling into the room above him while he was providing security at the 2008 … [Read more...]
Cops shooting cops… just NOT a good idea
News coming out of Columbus, Ohio is not very good. Sgt. Michael Mourne was shot by fellow officer Stephen Lazar as the team was exiting their vehicle to serve a search warrant. The admonition “Keep your finger OFF the trigger until you are ready to shoot” is one that I drilled into then heads of my firearms students so often they get sick of hearing it. There’s a reason … [Read more...]
There’s a reason WHY we say “Be Sure of your Target”!
One of the primary rules of shooting is to be sure of your target (what you’re shooting at) and beyond. It’s so you KNOW what it is that you’re about to send hot lead into! Apparently someone missed their “Firearms Training 101”. In a bizarre story coming out of Africa, a young female member of the Youth Corps was shot by the Headmaster of the Mbube Comprehensive … [Read more...]
Just tell the truth, painful as it might be, okay?
Telling the truth isn't always easy. Sometimes it's downright hard, actually. Especially when you've screwed up, and screwed up really bad. You know, like shooting yourself in your bullet-proof vest because you were stupid enough to point your loaded firearm at your own body and pull the trigger. That's what [allegedly] happened to (soon-to-be former?) Los Angeles … [Read more...]
A Hartford Police Officer’s Negligent Discharge
Last Saturday morning a Hartford police officer managed to shoot himself in the hand. He was inside the police station attempting to remove his gun belt when his sidearm “accidentally discharged” according to Hartford Police spokeswoman Christene Mertes. Dear Christene, It’s no accident. Firearms cannot fire by their own will. It takes one of us human beings to mess up … [Read more...]
Firearm Safety Rule #1 — Assume the Firearm is LOADED!
There's a reason we assume a firearm is loaded... until we prove otherwise. It's the only safe approach to dealing with firearms. Ignoring this Prime Directive of firearms safety can have some pretty drastic consequences, as one Quebec man learned today. An unnamed man accidentally shot himself in the face about 9:30am, according to this CNews report. He’s very lucky to … [Read more...]
Negligent Discharge near President Obama?
Obama's on a tour around the world again, promoting whatever it is he stands for. Lord knows I can't figure that out. It changes too often. But I digress... outside the hotel where he was staying, an assistant police inspector caused a bit of a ruckus. According to this news report, he was getting into his car when his revolver "went off". What's interesting about this … [Read more...]
What’s the first rule of gun handling again?
Gun Safety Rule #1 ALWAYS keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction. Seriously. It's not that difficult. And it saves having to explain how you managed to shoot both your 4-year-old son and your own mother while you're "cleaning your gun". Gun Safety Rule #2 ALWAYS keep your finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard until you're ready to … [Read more...]
Airman shot – because they didn’t follow basic safety rules
There are basic firearm safety rules that MUST be followed at all times. If you don't want to shoot yourself or someone else, that is. If you don't care about that, then you can do what these airmen from the Minot Air Force Base did at the Minot Rifle & Pistol Club, just north of Minot, North Dakota. Officers say it does not appear to be an accidental discharge of a … [Read more...]
VIN SUPRYNOWICZ: It’s fine for police to kill people, so long as there’s no ‘ill will’
VIN SUPRYNOWICZ: It's fine for police to kill people, so long as there's no 'ill will' Do we live in a free country or a police state? In a free country, police live under and must obey the same laws as the rest of us. In a police state, government police enjoy special laws and protections that allow them to do things that would be considered crimes if done by the rest … [Read more...]
Canada’s (In)Effective Gun Laws
In yet another stunning example of the ineptness of Canada's Firearms Act comes a news report out of Winnipeg, Manitoba. 20-year-old Jeremy Kyle St. Germain was arrested on August 7th, after managing to get himself shot. Jeremy is a career criminal with a firearms prohibition order in place. Despite his violent criminal past, police do not check up on him, his home is not … [Read more...]
Negligent Discharge in Toronto
“It was definitely an accidental shooting,” said Const. Tony Vella, a police spokesman.? It's odd how often we hear that phrase: accidental shooting. This time, it was a police officer in a training facility. Although no official source will say it, they come close: he shot himself. How? The same way a gun always "just goes off". He wasn't paying attention to what he … [Read more...]
How to Ruin Your Wedding Day
You wedding day is supposed to be the happiest day of your life. I know mine was. But then I wasn't stupid enough to bring an automatic firearm to my wedding reception either. Seriously. A news report out of Ankara Turkey today blew me away. Okay, not literally, obviously, but it sure made me laugh and cry both at the same time. As I said in a post the other day about … [Read more...]
Police officer accidentally shot himself… oh really
This news item from Queensland is puzzling. It states: A Queensland police officer is being treated in hospital after a service pistol accidentally discharged into his face. The 41-year-old senior constable from Metro North was at the gun safe at Albany Creek police station in Brisbane's north when the pistol discharged, causing shrapnel wounds to his face, police said … [Read more...]