[xmirage2kx]

LINKY

(KSL News) A Herriman man was shot and killed accidentally over the weekend.

Scott Flinchbaugh, 41, was part of a group working on an upcoming wedding in Rush Valley just south of Tooele.

The homeowner was showing off his gun collection. A guest took one of the weapons, cocked it, didn't see a bullet in the magazine and then pulled the trigger to release the hammer.

Flinchbaugh was hit in the back and was pronounced dead at the scene.

The Tooele County Sheriff's Office says charges are unlikely.

 

[divegeek]

Like most "accidental discharges", this one wasn't. It was clearly negligent.

Very sad.

 

[rdoggsilva]

Folks should take the time to make sure a weapon is unloaded. Most of the time they take it for granite. It is a shame.

 

[Tarzan1888]

Personal Protection and Home Defense weapons are kept loaded and secured at all times......No Personal Protection or Home Defense weapon is handed to another person, for inspection, without the weapon being un-loaded.....When handing a weapon to another person, for inspection, verify that all ammunition has been removed from the weapon and the action is open.

All Weapons that are NOT Personal Protection Weapons or Home Defense weapons are to unloaded and secured for storage.

When handling any weapon the 4 firearm safety rules are to be followed at all times.

1. Treat every Gun as if it were loaded.
2. Never point any gun at anything you don't want to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until you have identified your target.
4. Know your target and what is behind it.

Tarzan

 

[cardo]

Gun safety always needs to come 1st!!
When I was in hunter safety the instructor passed around a 38 revolver for everyone to look at. It had gone about half way through the room when it got to me. I opened up the magazine and there was a round in there!!! I just about wet myself!! :shocked: But then I saw that the primer was spent so it wasn't a live round, and it was right about then that the instructor yelled out that everyone should have been doing that right as the gun came to them. That lessen has stuck with me!! Whenever you pickup a gun or get handed a gun before you start doing anything with it always check to see if it's loaded!!

It was frustrating and sad to hear this story and how it could have been avoided with just some basic gun safety.

 

[murph]

This just amazes me that this still happens! Even when I'm going to dry fire my pistol and I'm absolutely positive it's unloaded I still point it in a direction where I'm sure it will hurt no one before I pull the trigger. Isn't that like rule #1 of gun safety (Every gun is loaded even when they are not?)

I'm sorry but I get really fired up about this because whenever someone is irresponsible and shoots someone else I worry about losing soldiers on our side. Just my 2 cents.

 

[apollosmith]

KSL has updated the story to indicate that, "His thumb slipped off the hammer and when it did, the gun discharged." This doesn't make it any less tragic and perhaps only slightly less negligent, but still, there is no way this happens if ALL of the safety rules are followed (to which I would add a #5 - never give anyone a loaded gun unless you absolutely trust them with your life).

UPDATE: The Tripe is reporting that the shooter was a CFP holder. :disgusted: http://www.sltrib.com/news/ci_9525791 It says he did pull the trigger. :dunno:

 

[Rugerlover]

He was probably trying to decock the gun.

THERE IS NO SAFE WAY TO DECOCK A 1911 WITH A ROUND IN THE CHAMBER.

 

[divegeek]

He was probably trying to decock the gun.

THERE IS NO SAFE WAY TO DECOCK A 1911 WITH A ROUND IN THE CHAMBER.

True, but some ways -- like pointing it towards someone's back -- are less safe than others.

 

[mchlwise]

True, but some ways -- like pointing it towards someone's back -- are less safe than others.

No question about that. :disgusted:

My wife was trying to decock her Beretta by dropping the hammer slowly with her thumb as she had seen me do, and it got away from her and fired. :shock: We were at the range, and she had it safely pointed downrange at the time, so everything was o.k. I immediately implemented my program to "unlearn" her my bad habits.

Decocking any gun by dropping the hammer slowly with the thumb on it is dangerous. Doing so with someone standing in front of you is negligent and stoopid. I'm surprised that charges weren't filed, but won't be surprised at all if this ends up in a civil wrongful death action.

 

[MarshallDodge]

I would bet this guy knows the rules of gun safety but it sounds like he had gotten complacent.

The 1911 has a grip safety, thumb safety, and most of the new models have the firing pin block. All of them were disengaged when the trigger was pulled. It goes to show you that no matter how many safety features are built into a gun, the person holding it is responsible for knowing how it works and following the four safety rules.

 

[Tarzan1888]

He was probably trying to decock the gun.

THERE IS NO SAFE WAY TO DECOCK A 1911 WITH A ROUND IN THE CHAMBER.

I was carrying my 1911 last year when I was in Wyoming with a guy I work with. he looked at it in my holster and asked me to un-cock it as it made him nervous to see it cocked and locked....

I took the opportunity to educate him and help him to realize that the safest way to carry it is as it was designed to be carried....Cocked and Locked.

The proper way to unload an 1911 is to remove the magazine and then remove the chambered shell, by racking the slide. Then and only then can you safely lower the hammer.

Tarzan