If you’re going to carry keep it secure.

[Rotorflyr]

More than likely he grabbed at it as it was falling and pulled the trigger.

Yep, or just after it hit the floor trying to snatch it back up before anyone else noticed it.....

[jmf552]

This has no bearing on the story, just personal sharing, but that Walmart is the second closest one to me. I go by it a lot. This is just what we need with all the impending gun control in VA.

[KevinRohrer]

- modern guns are drop-safe
- something is missing from the story
- he was probably fondling the gun while he was crapping
- but it shouldn't have 'went off' with modern inertia firing pins and transfer-bars/saftey blocks, etc..
(

I know of one fellow who was in the crapper and hung his Glockenspiel on the stall's coat hook. When he went to remove it, he picked it up and the hook contacted the "safe" trigger. The roof and a water pipe become ventilated and it looked like the bathroom was experiencing a Wintery wet-mix as water and pieces of ceiling tile rained down. Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

[jmf552]

Bottom line: If there is any chance, any chance at all in creation, that you might negligently mishandle a gun, pick a gun with a high margin of safety, not one with just a "safety trigger," which I always thought was an oxymoron. If your gun handling is absolutely 100% perfect, all the time, then carry whatever.

I have been shooting handguns for over 50 years and I am fanatical about safety, but I don't trust myself 100%. The stakes are too high.

[GpTom]

Who's to say it was a modern gun with all of the safety features that keep them from discharging when dropped? The one lady in the article said that she heard two loud noises?

[mmb617]

I cannot bring myself to carry with one in the chamber and no thumb safety, even with a proper holster. I know that's just me but it's how I feel. Since I do want one in the pipe I only buy pistols with safetys.

There was a story in the local paper a year or so ago about a guy who had a gun fall out of his pocket while attending a church service. Luckily when it discharged the round went into the floor. There wasn't a whole lot of detail in the story but I've always wondered how anybody let's something like that happen.

[Macantic]

Another good example of the lack of consciousness and awareness on the part of some who carry guns. Fortunately no one got hurt. But when incidents like the get reported on local news it just turns up the heat on gun owners. Bad examples burn good guys.

Yep! The good guys usually get burned when a few dumb asses do something stupid.

[Nifty]

I'm always suspicious when I hear about stories where the gun just goes off from falling out of a pocket. I'm more inclined to believe he was in there messing around with it, and most likely nothing is wrong with that gun.

Yep. And I bet they get dropped more than we will ever know. You would see tons of stories about guns going off.

[geo.ulrich]

I would imagine the first was the pistol the second sound the after effect

[Chuck808]

I'm always suspicious when I hear about stories where the gun just goes off from falling out of a pocket. I'm more inclined to believe he was in there messing around with it, and most likely nothing is wrong with that gun.

Exactly what I came to post. Guns dont just go off, even when they are dropped. Sure, maybe some do, but if the gun was even a remotely modern design and in proper functional condition, it is much more likely he was taking it in or out of a holster or just playing with it and pressed the trigger.