Firearm Safety
Firearm Safety
If you only take one thing from anything I teach, I would want it to be an understanding of and commitment to follow the 4 basic rules of firearm safety. Obviously, when it comes to firearms, there are more than 4 safety rules that should be followed but the 4 rules listed below, if followed correctly, will prevent 100 percent of all gun related accidental injuries and deaths. I know this is a very bold statement but it is completely true.
The four rules of firearm safety are:
Rule #1 Treat all guns as if they are loaded.
Rule #2 Never point the gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
Rule #3 Keep your finger off of the trigger until your sights are on target and you are ready to shoot.
Rule #4 Identify your target and what is behind it.
I’m going to break down these 4 rules and explain the meaning and logic behind them.
Rule #1 Treat all guns as if they are loaded.
The intention of this rule is to ensure that the person handling the firearm is doing so in a manner that would be consistent with knowing that the firearm is loaded and capable of firing. So many accidental gun deaths occurred from the belief that a gun was unloaded when it was not. This, compounded with unsafe gun handling, leads to a very high risk of severe injury or death for anyone within range of the weapon. This is why it is imperative that when handing a firearm to someone else or picking up a firearm with an unknown loaded/unloaded condition, you must act as if it is loaded and ready to shoot until you verify the gun’s status. This mentality is a must even for the most experienced shooters. You have to know with 100 percent certainty, the status of any gun that you handle or give to someone else to handle. This rule is especially important for inexperienced shooters and even children. It must be instilled in them to treat all guns as if they are loaded to prevent accidents in the extreme case of them coming across a firearm that they should not have access to.
Rule #2 Never point the gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.
This rule ensures that even if you screw up and break all the other safety rules, you still can’t possibly accidentally shoot someone or something you didn’t intend to. This rule is to be followed with loaded or “unloaded” firearm at all times. Pointing a loaded or unloaded firearm at another human for any reason should be considered a deadly threat and treated as such. Regardless of the situation, you must always remain aware of the firearm’s muzzle direction.
Rule #3 Keep your finger off of the trigger until your sights are on target and you are ready to shoot.
This is one of the hardest rules for new shooters follow. It is natural for anyone who has never been properly trained to instinctively put their finger on the trigger when they pick up a firearm. This habit must be broken immediately during the beginning stages of safety training. It must be deeply ingrained into the shooter’s consciousness to instinctively keep their finger straight and outside of the trigger guard until they are actively engaging a target. This applies to all handling of any firearm that does not require discharging the weapon. If you are moving, changing position, reloading, holstering, etc...the finger comes off of the trigger and placed straight and high up on the trigger guard. This not only prevents accidental discharges but doubles as a final safety that can be the difference between engaging a real threat or accidentally shooting before your mind confirmed the decision to shoot was needed. There have been cases of police officers unintentionally shooting unarmed suspects that were not a threat due to their surging adrenaline and fingers on the trigger. When your body goes into fight or flight mode, your ability to do fine motor skill manipulation goes out the window along with a whole array of other sensory overload symptoms that make it difficult if not impossible to determine minute amounts of pressure on something like a trigger. That is why we train to keep our fingers out of the trigger guard until the conscious decision has been made to shoot a threat or target. It also prevents you from discharging your weapon should you trip, fall, flinch, sneeze, or have any other involuntary twitching of the trigger finger while maneuvering with a loaded firearm.
Rule#4 Identify your target and what is behind it.
It might seem obvious to you that this rule would be a no-brainer but it actually gets overlooked quite often. Aside from shooting paper targets on a properly configured gun range, any other location that you might discharge a firearm would be surrounded with potential disaster areas of bullet impact. Not only do you have to be aware of what you are shooting at, you also have to be aware of what is beyond the target or threat. Target identification is an absolute must with zero exceptions. It is heartbreaking to hear the stories of people shooting a loved one or innocent person due to mistaking them for a threat. This is especially common in low light situations which is why it is critical that you not only train to shoot in the dark but also train to use a flashlight when needed for proper target ID. There are also secondary benefits for using a light such as disorienting the threat and causing temporary night vision degradation.
There is a good chance that what you are shooting at will not completely stop the bullet. That’s also not taking into consideration if you missing your intended target. You must practice awareness of what kind of potential damage your bullet will do beyond what is immediately in front of you. You must have an understanding of the potential for shoot-throughs and the difference between a rifle round and a handgun round. You are ultimately responsible for every single bullet you shoot regardless of the circumstances. You could be 100 percent justified in your use of force and still be charged with manslaughter for accidentally killing someone else with a missed shot.
Unauthorized Access and Minors
Firearms can be extremely dangerous if mishandled or in the hands of an untrained person. Firearms, by design, are very efficient deadly weapons which is why they are the go-to weapon for military, law enforcement, and law-abiding citizens. Unfortunately, firearms can end up in the hands of criminals, terrorists, unsupervised children, and reckless morons. As a gun owner, it is your obligation to keep your firearm secure from unauthorized people. It is your obligation to ensure you have the proper knowledge, skills, and mindset needed to safely own and operate your firearm. It is your obligation to teach everyone in your home these things as well. I am not advocating teaching your 5 year old how to lay down suppressing fire or to try and convince your significant other to start carrying a handgun for self defense if they are opposed to it. I do think it is very important that if you choose to bring a firearm into your home, that it be a family discussion and that everyone in the house has a solid understanding of the dangers, risks, and benefits. I believe in teaching all family members who are old enough to comprehend life or death, the severe consequences of mishandling firearms or being around someone who is mishandling a firearm.
Not everyone will agree with me on this subject and that’s ok. Some people will choose to hide their firearm in a shoe box in the closet and pretend like it doesn’t exist and that there is no way their child would think to look there. Some people will avoid having the hard conversations with their kids because they think it will be too scary to do so. Some people think that by teaching gun safety to children, they are somehow advocating these children to handle firearms unsupervised.
People are curious by nature. I believe it is better to openly discuss things with my family in a safe, controlled environment rather than have their first experience handling a firearm be on their own or even worse, with an untrained person. Everyone in my household knows the 4 rules of gun safety. Even though I keep my guns in a safe, I know that if my kids came across a loaded firearm anywhere they went, they would not accidentally shoot themselves or someone else. They also know how to identify unsafe behavior and to vacate the area immediately if they witness someone mishandling any kind of firearm. Even though my family all know how to safely operate and handle firearms, I still keep things locked up to prevent unauthorized people from easily accessing my firearms.
Ultimately, it is up to you how you will handle this matter but it must be something considered before moving forward with bringing a firearm into your home.