"Accident" or "Gross Negligence"?????

[Glock Fan]

Link Removed

N.J. Officer Accidently Shoots, Kills Self
Gun discharged while he installed rubber sleeve on the grip

Posted: Friday, February 19, 2010
Updated: February 19th, 2010 10:48 AM EDT


Atlantic City Police Department

Officer Kevin B. Wilkins
Officer.com News

An Atlantic City officer died of an accidental gunshot from his service weapon while on duty yesterday morning, according to The Press of Atlantic City.

Officer Kevin B. Wilkins was sitting in his cruiser at approximately 1:30 a.m. outside the Stanley Holmes Village apartment complex on Kentucky and Baltic avenues when the incident occurred.

The 31-year-old removed the clip of extra bullets in his semi-automatic pistol's handle to install a rubber sleeve on the grip, but accidentally discharged the remaining bullet in the chamber.

The bullet stuck him in the face, police told the newspaper.

Nearby officers summoned medical help, but Wilkins was pronounced dead 15 minutes later.

He is the first Atlantic City officer killed in the line of duty in five years.

"He was a city resident who knew and was able to interact favorably with the community, and it's a great loss," Chief John Mooney told the newspaper.

Funeral arrangements are pending.

There are several things wrong with this story. First question that comes to mind is why was this officer attempting to install a rubber sleeve onto his duty gun in the field? Wouldn't it be more appropriate to be doing this in a "secure" location such as the department arms room, his home, or maybe some other location where he would be somewhat "safe". What if there was an incident while he was in the process of doing this modification and needed the immediate use of his firearm? Not good! :nono:

Second is in the reporting. Does the Atlantic City Police Department issue officers M1 Garand pistols? I can't think of any semi-auto pistol that uses a "clip". If there was a "bullet" in the chamber of the gun, then it should be taken in to have the obstruction cleared. I have never heard of a "bullet" firing.

Third is what was the officer doing pointing the muzzle of the gun at his face? What part of "Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction" did he not understand?

This is a graphic reminder of why it's critical that people handling firearms not be careless, and follow safe firearms handling procedures AT ALL TIMES!

Something doesn't smell right about this incident. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and I'm sure that there's more to this story than whats' being reported.



gf

 

[theicemanmpls]

"Wilkins’ class received seven days of firearms training with Glock .40-caliber pistols “to the best of my recollection,” Saduk said. Atlantic City police currently carry that model."
The pistol worked as designed. The officer failed to clear his weapon, and payed a terrible price. Condolences to his family. This should serve as a reminder to all of us. All firearms should be considered as loaded, until triple checked before servicing.
The media never gets these things right.

 

[Mainsail]

The biggest problem I saw was that they reported that he was "killed in the line of duty" which I suppose is technically correct, but diminishes what that means for an officer killed while actually engaged in protecting the public.

The clip vs. magazine thing is no big deal. No reporter is going to get it right and we all know what he's talking about anyway.

 

[fuhr52]

Four safety rules to live by:
1. All guns are loaded
2. Never point a gun at a target you are not willing to destroy
3. Never put your finger on the trigger until your ready to destroy the target
4. Know what is beyond your target

 

[Mainsail]

Four safety rules to live by:
1. All guns are loaded
2. Never point a gun at a target you are not willing to destroy
3. Never put your finger on the trigger until your ready to destroy the target
4. Know what is beyond your target

Sadly, you’ve hit the nail square on the head; people don’t know the actual rules. Rule One is actually, “All guns are to be considered loaded until you have confirmed that they are not”.

Somewhere along the way, the rule was dumbed down so that dumb people could remember it. As you can imagine, letting dumb people have guns increases the likelihood of an accident.

If, as you wrote, ”all guns are always loaded” you would never clean it. After all, what sane person would clean a loaded gun?

If, as you wrote, ”all guns are always loaded” you would never dry-fire it. After all, what sane person would ever dry-fire a loaded gun?

The problem is that people make these sorts of sweeping claims truly believing that it’s making them safer, when in reality it makes them more dangerous. If you say you believe that all guns are always loaded and then you (or someone sees you) dry-fire it or clean it etc., you are proving yourself a liar. It’s not semantics; the simple fact is that rules that are so critical as the Four Rules for Handling Firearms are, they absolutely must be inviolate. PERIOD. If it’s a rule, you either follow it completely all the time are you are lying.

Once I have confirmed that all the cartridges are removed from my gun, it’s unloaded. I can then safely clean it or dry-fire it or whatever. That does not, however, mean that I can ignore the other three rules by any means. The rules overlap and provide a redundant system to ensure your and other’s safety. But if you’re going to pretend that ‘all guns are always loaded’ when you know darn well you don’t always (100%) treat all guns as though they are always loaded, you are setting yourself up for a potentially tragic catastrophe. The rule is too important to dumb it down for convenience.

 

[Ropadope]

Four safety rules to live by:
1. All guns are loaded
2. Never point a gun at a target you are not willing to destroy
3. Never put your finger on the trigger until your ready to destroy the target
4. Know what is beyond your target

Can't say anymore than that. Darwin wins.

 

[Anthony_I_Am]

No such thing

There is no such thing as an "accidental discharge". Guns don't just fire all by themselves. Example: I have several cases of 45 ACP stored for a "rainy day" and in the years they have been sitting there, not one of the 2000 or so rounds has ever fired itself. This guy was killed because he failed to follow simple rules of gun use/ownership. When you don't follow the rules, it is negligence, not accidental.

The only possible case of accidental discharge I can think of would be a black powder chain fire, and even that is preventable if you follow practice instead of taking the short cut.

 

[HK4U]

The incorrect terminology by the press always reinforces the fact that they have no idea what they are talking about when it comes to firearms.

The officer removed the magazine but I guess he either forgot to rack the slide to clear the chamber or got lazy and did not take the time to do it. A very tragic incident that should never have happened.

 

[fuhr52]

Sadly, you’ve hit the nail square on the head; people don’t know the actual rules. Rule One is actually, “All guns are to be considered loaded until you have confirmed that they are not”.

Somewhere along the way, the rule was dumbed down so that dumb people could remember it. As you can imagine, letting dumb people have guns increases the likelihood of an accident.

If, as you wrote, ”all guns are always loaded” you would never clean it. After all, what sane person would clean a loaded gun?

If, as you wrote, ”all guns are always loaded” you would never dry-fire it. After all, what sane person would ever dry-fire a loaded gun?

The problem is that people make these sorts of sweeping claims truly believing that it’s making them safer, when in reality it makes them more dangerous. If you say you believe that all guns are always loaded and then you (or someone sees you) dry-fire it or clean it etc., you are proving yourself a liar. It’s not semantics; the simple fact is that rules that are so critical as the Four Rules for Handling Firearms are, they absolutely must be inviolate. PERIOD. If it’s a rule, you either follow it completely all the time are you are lying.

Once I have confirmed that all the cartridges are removed from my gun, it’s unloaded. I can then safely clean it or dry-fire it or whatever. That does not, however, mean that I can ignore the other three rules by any means. The rules overlap and provide a redundant system to ensure your and other’s safety. But if you’re going to pretend that ‘all guns are always loaded’ when you know darn well you don’t always (100%) treat all guns as though they are always loaded, you are setting yourself up for a potentially tragic catastrophe. The rule is too important to dumb it down for convenience.

The four rules I stated where instilled in me at a young age by my father. They are ment as a guide line to prevent unfotunate mishaps. They are not ment to be take literally. Obviously I would expect an individule to have enough sence to double and triple check to make sure a gun is unloaded before cleaning or dry fireing. That's the trouble with todays sociaty, they seem to be a little short on comon scence.These rules are ment as a guide. If you pick up a gun concider it loaded. Don't point it at something your not willing to destroy. Keep your finger off the triger untill your ready to fire. Know were the bullet is going.

 

[hunter won]

The Glock .40...everybody heard of a Glock .40" Fifty cent Too short" all talk about a Glock .40 This was an ATF agent that said he was the only one in this room professional enough to use a Glock .40 and shot himself in the leg like Plaxico Burris.At least in the academy they show you to always remove the mag first rack the slide 3 times and inspect the chamber.If these rules are followed no accidental discharge is going to happen.If this was a new Glock model why put a rubber sleeve they won't work.The original non rail Glock's fit the rubber grips.Skate board tape works.

 

[HK4U]

The four rules I stated where instilled in me at a young age by my father. They are ment as a guide line to prevent unfotunate mishaps. They are not ment to be take literally. Obviously I would expect an individule to have enough sence to double and triple check to make sure a gun is unloaded before cleaning or dry fireing. That's the trouble with todays sociaty, they seem to be a little short on comon scence.These rules are ment as a guide. If you pick up a gun concider it loaded. Don't point it at something your not willing to destroy. Keep your finger off the triger untill your ready to fire. Know were the bullet is going.

Exactly. The first rule means that you consider the gun loaded until you have proven other wise. It is not rocket science. No matter how simple there will always be someone that will ignore the obvious.

 

[Ektarr]

"Accident" or "Gross Negligence" only addresses 2 of the 3 possibilities at work here. Sad to say, the third is far too prevalent among our LEO's.

 

[TSOL]

I was at an outdoor range about a month ago when I heard the range office yelling at some guy that he can't load his firearm on the bench behind the people shooting. He then yelled please tell me that pistol that you have pointed at your son (perhaps 6 or 7 years old) doesn't have one in the pipe. As I was leaving I went to throw my trash away and had to walk past this guy it was then that I noticed he was wearing an official jacket that said XYZ Sheriff's Dept. I assume and hope that this guy is just a jail deputy and not out patrolling the roads. He had a loaded gun lying on the bench pointing directly at his son's chest not to mention that there were a also about 15 - 20 people down range from where his gun was pointed. Dumb.

I have since gone back to using only a local indoor range that is policed very well and any safety violations result in a very quick trip out the door.

 

[hunter won]

Not many police are trained properly.The small agencies in rural parts are the worst trained truth be told.

 

[Daugherty16]

AD vs. ND

Since this thread already contains some splitting of hairs, let me point out that accidental discharges do occasionally happen. There was a thread about this recently - seems the sear wore down on some older pistol and it not only fired itself while lying on the bench, but it went auto and emptied the mag, shooting the hand off the owner as he tried to grab it and stop it. So maybe allowing the wearing of the sear was negligence, but even i won't take on that argument.

But in general i agree that there are no accidental discharges, only negligent ones. If you obey rule # 2, even a ND doesn't have to have somber consequences.

Guns are inherently dangerous tools. They are made to kill or destroy. If we never get complacent about that, we will never relax the rules for safe handlng.

What was going through this cop's mind (i mean, before the bullet) when he was pointing the muzzle at his own face? I can't even imagine.

Very sad, and totally avoidable. My heart goes out to his family and colleagues.

 

[jtg452]

Link Removed



There are several things wrong with this story. First question that comes to mind is why was this officer attempting to install a rubber sleeve onto his duty gun in the field? Wouldn't it be more appropriate to be doing this in a "secure" location such as the department arms room, his home, or maybe some other location where he would be somewhat "safe". What if there was an incident while he was in the process of doing this modification and needed the immediate use of his firearm? Not good! :nono:

Second is in the reporting. Does the Atlantic City Police Department issue officers M1 Garand pistols? I can't think of any semi-auto pistol that uses a "clip". If there was a "bullet" in the chamber of the gun, then it should be taken in to have the obstruction cleared. I have never heard of a "bullet" firing.

Third is what was the officer doing pointing the muzzle of the gun at his face? What part of "Keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction" did he not understand?

This is a graphic reminder of why it's critical that people handling firearms not be careless, and follow safe firearms handling procedures AT ALL TIMES!

Something doesn't smell right about this incident. There are a lot of unanswered questions, and I'm sure that there's more to this story than whats' being reported.



gf

If the gun broke or failed to work as intended, it's an accident. If the gun worked as it was meant to, it's negligence.

It sounds harsh but it's the truth. Guns don't decide when to work. They just work when humans decide to make them to.

I won't pick up a gun without verifying its' status first. Even when I lived alone during college, if I picked up a gun, I dropped the mag and checked the chamber or opened the cylinder. Every time with out fail. Same way at a gun shop. If they won't clear it, then I won't take it and I find someplace else to shop.

 

[ccbricker]

Newbie on this board but feel compelled to reply. My grandfather owned a gun shop and after receiving his course of instruction would allow us to handle his inventory. However, if you picked up a slide operated pistol and did not drop the magazine and pull the slide back immediately you received a knuckle on top of your head. It taught is a great lesson because to this day when I pull a gun out of the safe I start ducking as I try to make sure the weapon is cleared.:no:

 

[Ropadope]

I'm beginning to wonder if this wasn't a suicide covered up by "Accidental discharge"

Find a way to compel the manufacturer that the firearm was somehow negligent in it's operation and you have a "suicide policy" payment to the family.

Just thinking out loud.