Negligent Discharge
By Rod Carter

If I could write enough articles to prevent someone from getting hurt from a negligent discharge, I would spend all day every day at my keyboard.  As we all know, negligent discharges can only be prevented by the person holding the gun.  Simple as that.  Being a retired engineer/analyst, I constantly research and analyze things and I have found certain characteristics that are associated with most negligence discharges.  

Most of the time when a person pulls the trigger on a loaded firearm that was thought to be unloaded, the person was either or all of the following:  Distracted, pre-occupied, tired, or under the influence of adult beverages.  

We all know to never ever pull the trigger on a firearm without first checking to ensure it is unloaded.  However, discharges occur and unfortunately they will continue to occur.  So, my New Year’s wish as Chief Range Safety Officer is for all of us to “Always keep our firearms pointed in a safe direction.”