Saturday, December 1, 2012

TED talk on inequality given by Nick Hanauer

Here is the much-talked-about TED talk on inequality given by Nick Hanauer. We (TED) are posting it here to promote public discussion on an important issue. For more background on this, see this blog post from TED Curator Chris Anderson: http://tedchris.posterous.com

In a capitalist economy, the true job creators are middle-class consumers.  And taxing the rich, to make investments, that make the middle class grow and thrive, is the single shrewdest thing we can do for the middle-class, the poor, and the rich. Thank you. 



Does this make a difference?

Victim on the left, Killer on the right


Get Away with Murder Laws--gotta love 'em.

Modern Toy Guns Ain't What They Used to Be

Local news reports - Ban them sumbitches says I.

The Fallacy of "Criminals Get Guns from Other Criminals"

From The Four Major Ways Criminals Get Guns

First we need to identify the ways in which they currently do come into possession of weapons. We'll eliminate one common fallacy right away, that criminals get guns from other criminals. This may be true as far as it goes, but it doesn't help us in our analysis. We're interested in the original source of guns that are used in crime. If, for example, a gun is stolen during a burglary and passed from criminal to criminal before being used in a murder, that gun came from "Theft," which is one of our main categories.

Florida Man Sentenced to Six Years in Prison for Gun Accident

Local news reports
A 27-year-old man was sentenced Friday to six years in prison after his 7-month-old baby was accidentally shot two years ago in fight with his girlfriend in a Super 8 motel on Youngerman Circle in Jacksonville, according to the State Attorneys Office.

Justin Satterfield pleaded guilty in August to charges of child neglect, possession of a firearm and ammunition by a convicted felon, two counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession with intent to sell, according to prosecutors. Girlfriend Brandy Purvis pleaded guilty to child neglect and was sentenced to time served, which was 155 days.

Police said the two were arguing and fighting over possession of a rifle about 2:20 a.m. when it went off. The shot hit their child in the arm and chest. Satterfield had been convicted of aggravated assault in 2007, according to court records.
Does six years sound about right to you? It was an accident, after all, and no one died. 

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Another Gun Range Mishap - One Dead in South Carolina

SF Gate reports
Authorities say a 62-year-old man has died after accidentally shooting himself at a West Columbia shooting range.

Lexington County Coroner Harry Harman said Jerry Marsh III of Columbia was taking his .40-caliber Glock semi-automatic handgun apart around 7 p.m. Thursday at Shooter's Choice when it fired, striking him in the chest.

Authorities say Marsh died a short time later at the hospital.

First of all, the gun did not fire. "When it fired" is misleading. The man was so unsafe in the handling of his gun that it's frightening. Forgetting there's a round in the chamber is bad enough, but then he pointed the gun at his chest and pulled the trigger, these are essentially the mistakes he made.  And he paid the ultimate price.

Does anyone really believe these were his first violations of safety rules ever?  I don't.  That's why taking gun misuse more seriously is so important.  One strike you're out would weed out many of these dangerous people and save lives, sometimes their own.

What's your opinion? Please leave a comment.

Cenk and Company on Stand Your Ground

November Visits and Page Views

(click to make bigger)

Friday, November 30, 2012

No Retrial for Derek Carlile

I saw it first on TTAG.

We've discussed his case before. I don't remember what I said at the time, but I'm happy right now reading this result. I can't imagine what he's been through.

If, however, he keeps his job and continues to own and use guns, I will voice my strongest disapproval.  But, as far as not facing any more possibilities of going to jail, I'm all for it.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

More on Michael Dunn - The Florida Killer Formerly a Lawful Gun Owner with CCW Permit



I guess I was right the other day when I said he probably had a concealed carry permit. The system which supposedly keeps track of how many of them turn out to be bad guys is flawed, to say the least.  But, in this case the media happened to get ahold of the fact.

My other prediction still remains to be fulfulled. I say he'll use the "stand your ground" defense, which in Florida is a pretty good bet.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Why Should We Not Count the Suicides?

The Daily Beast published an article about how the gun control lobby is mobilizing its efforts in demanding change from President Obama. They said this:
During Obama’s second term, “48,000 Americans will be killed by guns,” says John Feinblatt, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s chief police adviser and chairman of Mayors Against Illegal Guns, citing a statistic based on research from the Center for Disease Control. “The American people deserve to know how they will be kept safe, and that’s the job of the president as he enters his new term.”
The number will actually be more like 130,000. There's no reason not to count suicides.  Here's why.

The terrible lethality of a firearm makes a suicide attempt more likely to succeed.  The same can be said of attempted murder, when a gun is used, it succeeds more often.  Therefore, if our qualifying factor is the gun, suicides and murders can legitimately be counted together. The larger number represents ALL the victims of gun violence.

Suicides, in fact, should be counted first. The use of a gun plays a more important role in the act of suicide than it does in murder.  A person who attempts suicide and fails is more likely to get beyond their temporary depression or whatever the trigger was than the fellow intent on murder. It's with homicide that alternate means are more often used successfully.

Of course no one knows for sure what the percentages would be, but I think it's safe to say that homicidal people who do not have access to guns do not always commit murder.  And suicidal people who do not have access to guns do not always commit suicide.

This is why restricting access to unfit and dangerous and suicidal people is so important.   And this is why counting suicides and homicides together is the  right thing to do when discussing the cost of gun violence.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Jon Stewart on the Continuing Republican Hyporcisy - Benghazi and the Susan Rice Nomination

The Gun Frenzy of 2012


President Obama’s election and recent re-election have apparently fueled a gun-buying craze in this country unlike anything we’ve seen in modern times.  

USA Today reported this week:

“For the second consecutive year, prospective gun buyers joined Black Friday shoppers in record numbers as firearms dealers swamped the F.B.I. with required buyer background check requests. The F.B.I. fielded 154,873 calls, a roughly 20 percent increase from last year’s previous one-day record of 129,166, according to bureau records. The requests came in such volume throughout the day that F.B.I. call centers experienced two brief outages — one of 18 minutes and one for 14 minutes — during the busy day, bureau spokesman Stephen Fischer said Monday.” 

As the report made clear: 

“The F.B.I. does not track actual gun sales. But the number of firearms sold Friday is likely higher because multiple firearms can be included in one transaction by a single buyer.”
We had a pretty good discussion about background checks and how they relate to gun sales a while ago. The thing I picked up on is that used guns sold by pawn shops and FFL gun dealers also require the NICS background check and they obviously don't represent new guns entering the market.

Another reason is to request a concealed carry permit.  No gun sale is required for that.

On the other hand, as this NYT article points out, some folks purchase multiple weapons with only one background check. So, although counting background checks as a way of gauging gun sales is far from accurate, I think we can all agree that business is booming and Obama is the greatest gun salesman of all time.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Minnesota Gun Owner Shoots Up the Neighbor's House

Local CBS News reports

An Otsego man faces multiple charges after allegedly firing a semiautomatic handgun Sunday four or five times near his neighbors’ house, sending a bullet into a home just inches from where a homeowner was sitting, court documents say. 

Devin Petersen, 45, is charged with one count of intentionally firing a dangerous weapon, one count of recklessly firing a gun and one count of illegally possessing a gun after being convicted of a violent crime. Records show Petersen was convicted of a controlled substance charge in 2002, making him ineligible to have a gun.
Gun-rights people breathe a sigh of relief when the read that one of the charges was "felon in possession." But is this guy really that much different than millions of so-called lawful gun owners? They like to get high once in a while, and they have too much to drink from time to time.

No, in spite of gun advocates' protests, this guy was just another of the many unfit gun owners out there.  The fact that he had picked up a felony ten years ago doesn't separate him from them.  The gun ties them together.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Making Gun Theft Easy West Virginia Style.

Local news reports
Theft of five firearms from vehicles in southwest Keyser in an area known as “The Hill” remains under investigation by the Keyser Police Department.

Three incidents were reported Saturday, including theft of a Remington .270 caliber rifle and a Remington  .223 caliber rifle from an unlocked vehicle in the 500 block of Baltimore Street; theft of $648 worth of assorted items from an unlocked vehicle in the 500 block of Richmond Street; and theft of two wallets from a vehicle in the 400 block of Ridge Street.

Keyser Police also investigated theft of three firearms from a locked vehicle at the rear of an apartment building on Carskadon Road. Valued at $1,600, the stolen firearms included a Remington .270 caliber rifle, a Savage .22 caliber rifle and a Ruger .22 caliber Magnum rifle. Hunting equipment was also taken.

“We urge residents to keep their vehicles locked to help deter this type of crime,” said a Keyser Police official.
It is my contention that leaving a gun in the car is wrong and should be illegal. Leaving the car unlocked is just further evidence of that irresponsibility.

I'm not saying the thieves are not wrong.  They are responsible for what they do.  But the gun owner who fails to properly store his firearms in a safe manner is guilty of that and should be held accountable.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Indiana Man Shoots White Deer in Residential Area

Local news reports
Officials say on the first day of hunting season, someone drove down Elbe Road in Warrick County near Evansville and shot a white deer between houses after dark.
   
Neighbors tracked the poacher down and held him until officials arrived.
   
Wildlife officers say killing a white deer is legal in Indiana, but it's illegal to shoot the deer from a public roadway.

“We have elementary children that live in the neighborhood, the main concern that someone just pulls on the road and starts shooting between houses,” said neighbor Ginger Wilcox.

Officials say the suspect could face six charges, including charges for shooting after hours and shooting from a roadway.

Six charges, I wonder if that includes "felon in possession of a firearm?"

It doesn't really matter.  The thing is, among criminal gun owners there are some who are responsible and among lawful gun owners there are some who are not.

Gun availability needs to be severely restricted to the irresponsible ones, regardless of their past.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Happy 50th Birthday Jon Stewart

More on the Resounding Gun-Rights Defeat in New York

via The First Amendment Center
The plaintiffs sought to invoke the First Amendment’s presumption against prior restraints — laws that impose hurdles on speech-related activities, such as licensing laws. They argued that just as the First Amendment generally forbids the government from requiring anyone to obtain a license before speaking, the Second Amendment also should forbid government from making individuals obtain licenses before exercising their fundamental right to “keep and bear arms.”

“We are hesitant to import substantive First Amendment principles wholesale into Second Amendment jurisprudence,” the appeals court panel wrote.
Actually there is quite a bit of 1st Amendment analogizing, both here and in other cases. The key word is "wholesale." The judges said you cannot import those comparisons "wholesale into Second Amendment jurisprudence."

What's your opinion?  Don't you wish the judges would rule on the car comparisons too?

Please leave a comment.

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Lawful Florida Gun Owner Commits Murder

Local news reports

A Brevard County man remained in jail late Tuesday, accused of shooting a teenager dead in an argument over loud music.

Michael David Dunn, 45, and his girlfriend were in Jacksonville Friday for Dunn's son's wedding when they stopped at a convenience store, Jacksonville sheriff's Lt. Rob Schoonover said.

Jordan Russell Davis, 17, and several other teenagers were sitting in a sport utility vehicle in the parking lot when Dunn pulled up next to them in a car and asked them to turn down their music, Schoonover said.

Jordan and Dunn exchanged words, and Dunn pulled a gun and shot eight or nine times, striking Jordan twice, Schoonover said. Jordan was sitting in the back seat. No one else was hurt. Dunn's attorney Monday said her client acted responsibly and in self-defense. She did not elaborate.

Dunn and his girlfriend took off afterward, and witnesses jotted down their tag number, deputies said.

Dunn, a gun collector, was arrested Saturday at his home in Satellite Beach on charges of murder and attempted murder. He was being held without bail.
I'm guessin' this guy was not only a lawful gun owner, but that he had a concealed carry permit. They're easy enough to pick up in Florida, why wouldn't he?   Gun owners in Pennsylvania are getting them through the mail, for crying out loud. The interesting thing is no one is checking and keeping track of how many concealed carry permit holders are actually turning out to be unfit.

What's your opinion?  I think he should try for the "stand your ground" defense.  I mean, an older white guy arguing with a car full of black teenagers, who wouldn't feel threatened?

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Registered Sawed-off Shotgun


What does, "registered short or ultra-short shotgun" mean? Aren't sawed-off shotguns illegal?  Does it depend on where he lives?

New York Gun Control Law Upheld - Another Defeat for the Second Amendment Foundation

Yahoo news reports
The state of New York can continue to require residents who want to carry a concealed handgun in public to obtain a special license, a federal appeals court ruled on Tuesday.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New York rejected a challenge brought by several Westchester residents and the Second Amendment Foundation against the state's handgun licensing scheme.

Like numerous other states, New York imposes restrictions on individuals who wish to carry concealed firearms in public.

Under New York law, people can apply to carry a handgun outside the home for the limited purposes of hunting or target practice. But those who want to carry concealed handguns in public without any restrictions must convince state licensing officers they have a special need for self-protection greater than others in the general community.
Alan Gura is having a bad year. Not unlike the NRA itself, which recently suffered a terrible defeat in San Francisco, he and his organization couldn't pick a winner in the election . Now they can't even do something about the "may issue" policy of granting concealed carry licenses in New York.

What's your opinion? It seems to me the tide is turning.  What do you think?

Please leave a comment.

San Francisco Gun Control Laws Upheld - Another Defeat for the NRA

Local news reports
San Francisco is claiming a legal victory over the National Rifle Association, but an attorney for the group says its fight against local gun control laws is just beginning.

A 2007 city law — strengthened by then-Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi in 2011 — compels gun owners to “safely store” firearms in their homes and generally requires them to use trigger locks. A 1994 ordinance outlawed possession of “particularly dangerous ammunition” such as fragmenting bullets and expanding bullets with “no sporting purpose.”

The NRA first went after the restrictions in 2009, but on Monday, a U.S. District Court judge ruled that the group’s lawyers had failed to prove the restrictions inhibit constitutional rights to bear arms. As a result, an injunction sought by the NRA was not granted.

The NRA is having a bad year. They couldn't pick a winner in the big election, now this.

What's your opinion? Isn't it a little weird to claim constitutional protection for certain kinds of bullets and the right to NOT safely store your guns?  What's wrong with these people?

Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting in Missouri While Reenacting a Movie

Local news reports
One man is hospitalized and another is in custody after an accidental shooting that happened during a reenactment of a movie scene. 

Upon arrival Deputies located a 25-year-old man with an apparent gunshot wound to his chest.  The victim was air-lifted to an area hospital for treatment.

The victim and three of his friends had been over to his home to help him move. The men had been drinking and watching the movie "Savages". The victim and his friend began to discuss disarming someone with a weapon, based on a scene from the movie. 

While they were in the process of the demonstration a 9mm handgun discharged, striking the victim in the chest.

A 27-year-old man was taken into custody and transported to the Jefferson County Jail. The Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has taken the shooing under advisement.
Now, this is the proper response to an accidental shooting. The responsible person is locked up immediately, then the investigation is conducted to determine what charges are appropriate.

Of course, in places like Missouri it can still go wrong.  The prosecutor could turn out to be a gun nut sympathetic to guys who have accidents.  But, when the responsible person is arrested like this, I suppose that's less likely to happen.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting at Iowa Gun Range - 8-Year-old Shot in the Head - No Charges

Local news reports
Authorities won't pursue charges in connection with an October accident at a park shooting range.

Eight-year-old David William Young was shot in the head after he allegedly crossed the firing line at Black Hawk County Park while a 5-year-old sibling was practicing with a .22-caliber rifle under adult supervision Oct. 29.

Capt. Rick Abben with the Black Hawk County Sheriff's Office said his office investigated the incident and forwarded its findings to the county attorney's office, which opted not to prosecute the matter.
Why? Why in the world would they NOT press charges? The adult who was supervising the 5-year-old should be in jail along with the person responsible for the range.

But, you know what it is?  Gun negligence is not taken seriously.  Even when people are seriously hurt, wherever possible they write these incidents off as simple accidents, pretending that no one is responsible. Accidents can happen to anyone, right?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Happy 70th Birthday Jimi Hendrix

ABC News has the Birthday Experience

Spy Guns

via Wired
Cyanide Gas Gun

A gas gun similar to this one was used by KGB officer Bogdan Stashinsky to assassinate two Ukrainian dissidents — Lev Rebet and Stepan Bandera — in Germany in 1957 and 1959. The gun, which Stashinsky concealed in a rolled-up newspaper, exploded hydrogen from a crushed cyanide capsule into the victim's face, causing him to go into cardiac arrest. Stashinsky later defected to Germany and confessed to the crimes. 

Kiss of Death

 For the spy-op gone bad, or simply for any Natscha who found herself out to dinner with the date from hell, this Cold War-era KGB lipstick gun delivered the kiss of death with a single 4.5mm shot.

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

The limits of gunloon intelligence.

This should keep Greg, Orlin, JIm, TS, and the rest of you lot occupied for some time. The surprise ending is what really makes this intriguing. Anyway, This video made me very happy. Enjoy!

False DGU Uncovered - MN Homeowner Arrested for Double Homicide

Local news reports

Upstate New York Gun Shop was Easy Pickin's for Burglars

Local news reports
Authorities say thieves broke into Tom's Guns and Ammo is Sodus overnight Friday.

Store owner Tom Putnam says the burglary was bad enough to potentially put him out of business. Putnam has been selling guns at his Sodus store for 20 years.


"They gained entry, which took them a little time, and probably in and out of here in less than five minutes," said Putnam.

He says thieves broke in through a side window and stole 62 handguns, cleaning out three display cases in his store.
Gun shops with inadequate security on the windows and doors should be held responsible for this kind of thing. Just like individual gun owners, gun shops need to practice safe storage and that means making it a bit more difficult for thieves to take the stuff.

Why is this such as difficult concept for the gun-rights crowd?

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Alabama Man Shoots Pregnant Wife, Commits Suicide - She and the Baby Survived

Local news reports
Authorities say a north Alabama woman has given birth after being shot during a Thanksgiving dinner gathering.

Marshall County District Attorney Steve Marshall says the woman gave birth by Caesarean section, and mother and child are doing OK.

Marshall tells al.com that the man suspected in the shooting, the woman's estranged husband, died on Saturday.

Albertville police say the man shot his wife more than once during a Thanksgiving dinner gathering and then turned the gun on himself. The woman was eight months pregnant at the time.

Police say the man had been invited over for the holiday.

Alabama was one of the "high-gun states" used to prove the famous "Guns are Bad News for Women." In this case the joke's on the pathetically unfit gun owner, who like so many used his gun to settle scores and get even.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Vallejo Man Defends his Son - After the Fact

SF Gate reports

Vallejo police have arrested a 44-year-old father on suspicion of fatally shooting a teenager who fought his son at a party.
Randee Damar Williams' 19-year-old son called him after being in a fight with a 17-year-old Richmond boy as a house party was winding down. Williams came to the house and shot the teen around 3:35 a.m. Sunday.

The Times-Herald reports several people called 911 and reported hearing six gun shots, followed by screams. When officers arrived to the house, they found the victim's body on the ground with gunshot wounds in his body and head.

Williams was later arrested at his home.
You see how easy it is to arrest the responsible person?  It doesn't take a lengthy investigation or consultation with the DA.

In this case, we've got another gun owner who takes the law into his own hands and believes the gun is the solution.  Does it matter if he was a legal or an illegal gun owner?  No, it doesn't.  It only matters that he was one of the irresponsible and unfit ones. He was either a hidden criminal or a bad guy.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Monday, November 26, 2012

Estimating the Number of DGUs

The Propaganda Professor made this wonderful post about six months ago. To my mind there has never been a better, more thorough and convincing explanation of this subject.

He concludes:

This is not a scientific study, just a suggestion or two about how one might be conducted. My figures may not be precise but they are, if not in the ballpark, at least on the right planet. If I had to wager whether the true DGU tally is closer to (a) 2.5 million, (b) 65,000 or (c) 500 to 1000, I’d bet the deed to the Ponderosa on the latter.

What's your opinion? Does it bring to mind my recent suggestion that there are about 500 a year?  Many pro-gun folks thought I was kidding, saying it for effect.  I wasn't.

The Professor uses the expression, "(assuming these incidents are all genuine non-duplicates)" when referencing some of the standard sources. I'm not quite that generous.  I do not assume they are all genuine, as I've frequently pointed out. Here's the most recent false DGU, it's of the brandishing kind. And everyone remembers the recent event in Washington State where a lady drew down on a pervert in the park and threatened to kill him.  Both of those were counted by the gun-rights crowd.

No, I'm afraid any list of so-called DGUs is chock full of criminal acts which were disguised as defensive and legitimate. That's how we can be sure the true number is as low as 500, give or take.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Cenk on the Fundamentalist Bullshit

Criminal Act Disguised as a DGU - With Police Approval

Local news reports and further to Laci's post about the polite society.
San Antonio police say a shopper who brandished a handgun during a Black Friday scuffle was within his rights.

Officers were sent to a mall's Sears store about 9 p.m. Thursday in response to a call about a shooting.

When they arrived, they detained a man holding a black 9 mm semi-automatic handgun with a black holster.

But the man hadn't fired the loaded weapon. He reportedly showed proof that he has a concealed handgun license. Police say he didn't break the law.

The San Antonio Express-News reported that he told police he pulled the gun to defend himself because a man punched him in the face.
That's a helluva call for the cops even in Texas.

What do you think?  Please leave a comment.

Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue

The Denver Post reports
Gun violence must be treated as a public-health issue — such as alcohol, smoking and traffic — say people concerned about gun-related death rates from mass shootings and random shots nationwide.

"Guns are where tobacco was in the 1950s," said Garen Wintemute, director of the Violence Prevention Research Program, who practices emergency medicine at the University of California at Davis School of Medicine. "There's a little bit of science and a great deal of reluctance to do anything with the results." 

In the mid-1980s, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention began to look at gun-related deaths and injuries as a public-health problem and to finance scientific studies into the root causes of gun violence. 

But in 1996, the National Rifle Association successfully lobbied to block funding for such research. Little publicly funded research has been conducted since. As a result, there are few strategies for reducing firearm-related deaths, but the toll is moving upward, according to the latest data from the CDC. 

 In 2010, there were 31,672 deaths in the United States from firearm-related injuries, up from 31,347 in 2009.
Well, I guess that's another nail in the coffin of "more guns equals less crime." Gun related deaths have INCREASED between 2009 and 2010.

It's amazing how the cherry-picking, mendacious gun-rights advocates will get on something and keep pushing it regardless of it's true worth. Most of them don't even think, they just repeat anything that supports their mandate.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Who Wants to Live in a Gun Dorm? - Nobody - Not Even Gun Owners

Local CBS News reports
Colorado’s new segregated “gun dorms” for students with valid concealed-carry permits have attracted zero students. 

The Daily Camera newspaper reports that since the University of Colorado’s Boulder and Colorado Springs campuses began segregating dorms for students with valid concealed-carry permits this year, not a single student has asked to live where guns are allowed.
This is the funniest gun story of the year. The gun-rights bullies pushed this through and there were no takers.  

Stop laughing and leave a comment.

Accidental Shooting of Wisconsin 9-Year-old by his 11-Year-old Brother - No Charges


Local news reports
A 9-year-old boy was injured Saturday afternoon in Pierce County when he was accidentally shot by his older brother.

After being notified of a juvenile male with a gunshot wound shortly after 4:30 p.m., Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputies discovered an 11-year-old boy had been unloading a handgun inside the residence when it accidentally went off and struck his 9-year-old brother in the leg.

The sheriff’s department is investigating the incident.
Dad should have been in jail that same night.What the hell kind of investigation is needed to determine whose gun it was? That kind of thing is done at the scene within minutes.

The problem is "accidental" shootings are taken too lightly. When they involve kids in any way, it's a double blunder to nonchalantly write them off.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Indiana Deer Hunter Shoots His Buddy

Local news reports
Officers said 35-year-old Jeremy Horn of Crawfordsville, was shot in the elbow by his hunting partner, 48-year-old Troy Payne, of Linden.  

Investigators said Payne had just shot an antlered deer and had his shotgun loaded with the safety off, while he checked on the deer.  

Officer said while Payne was checking the deer, Horn arrived to assist in dragging the deer out of the woods. Payne slung his shotgun over his shoulder, without placing the safety in the on position, and bent over to grab onto the antlers of the deer.  

When Payne bent over to grab the antlers, the shotgun slid off of his shoulder.  Payne caught the shotgun with one hand in the area of the trigger.  The shotgun discharged and struck Horn, who was standing about four feet away, in the elbow.

Investigators are ruling the shooting as an accident. Indiana Conservation Officers encourage hunters to be cautions when handling firearms. They said to make sure to control the muzzle and its direction at all times. They said the safety is a mechanical device, and can sometimes fail.
This kind of bumbling negligence should receive more than a friendly warning. But in Indiana, that's must they way things go.

What's your opinion?  Please leave a comment.

Sunday, November 25, 2012