Accidental Shooting

This was worth viewing. The video is a bit over 10 minutes long, and is a first-person account by a woman who unwittingly purchased a pistol that had been modified to the point of an accidental discharge, and was badly injured as a result. It is a sobering reminder.
 
I agree this is worth the time to watch and to consider her warning about gun modifications. I applaud her bravery in working through this, sharing her experience and her desire to continue shooting.
 
The sear was dremeled (she shows a good and hers in the video) which allowed the striker to slip off the sear. Also, the geometry of the installed parts was such that the striker block was never engaged. This allowed the striker to move forward to the primer without the trigger being pressed. So it was really two bad mistakes. She was having dead triggers prior, but they thought it was an ammo issue.
 
I take it to heart !!!

This is one of the best posts, that I have seen on TFL. I take it to heart as I am one of those guys that likes to tinker and tweak. I will use this information during our Hunter Safety Classes and it is very applicable and useful .... :)

Be Safe !!!
 
Thank you for sharing the video. The accident sounded minor. 9mm (I assume) passed through the calf and exited without hitting bone. Only it changed her life forever. Very scary and a reminder about how dangerous this sport can be. I hope Cameon recovery is much better than expected.
 
BoogieMan, yes, initially, it was minor (9mm minor PF loads even) and they even sent her home.

It was the follow-on complications that really caused the most issues...but for a bullet passing through her leg and not stopping all of the internal bleeding.
 
Wow!!! Pretty sobering post and well worth watching. I learned a lot from it. I don't modify the workings of my guns and trust the gunsmiths who do work on mine. Regardless, it CAN happen to anyone and it can be life altering. Thanks for posting.:(
 
That is awful. I dont understand if it was made clear in the video, was her gun holstered or unholstered? With the time, I am assuming this was on the draw. She also said she did not rack her gun. Or everyone watching said she did not rack it.

I guess a little further explanation would help. I can completely understand if in the draw with the sear job that it discharged on its own. It is a little confusing with her wording of not racking her gun. She couldn't have had an empty chamber, was she indexing on the draw, did it go off while still in her holster? It doesn't fully explain at what point the gun went off. I am assuming from the angle it was still holstered. Am I correct? That would clear up a lot.
 
The firearm discharged while it was still in the holster. It was not in her hand.

The bottom of the holster blew off. The lead instructor said the empty case did not leave the ejection port (it was held inside by the holster) and basically was malfunctioned.
 
Detail Strip

This is why it is important to detail strip and used gun and inspect its parts and operation prior to use. Unfortunately as this incident shows, you cannot trust a used gun before a full inspection.

Shane
 
"...I was having a lot of jams in my firearm, but nothing to cause any concern."

"I had previously ran less than 100 rounds through the firearm."

"But I had purchased it used and was assured it was in tip top shape."

I'm happy that she wasn't injured more severely. However I see this as a series of mistakes leading to her accident and a perfect example of what not to do.

1. The used firearm wasn't subjected to a thorough inspection by a qualified gunsmith who would have pointed out the modifications.

2. An extensive testing of firearm and ammo compatibility wasn't done.

3. The continued malfunctioning of the firearm should have raised concern.
 
Wow, that was horrible. She has such a good attitude considering what happened to her. Thank her for sharing that story and thank you for posting it MarkCo.
 
Shane2 said:
This is why it is important to detail strip and used gun and inspect its parts and operation prior to use. Unfortunately as this incident shows, you cannot trust a used gun before a full inspection.
Click to expand...
Not everyone is qualified to look at the parts of a firearm and know whether or not any of the parts have been Bubbafied ... especially if it's a brand and/or model you're not familiar with. And most sellers aren't likely to be amenable to allowing every prospective buyer to take the gun to a gunsmith (who himself may or may not be qualified on that particular firearm) to inspect.

Does she have any recourse against the person who sold it to her, and who assured her it didn't have any problems?
 
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dajowi, your points are valid and I have discussed those with others today who have sent me messages and wanted to know more. She has certainly self-evaluated and learned these lessons over the last 9 months time.

There are a lot of lessons to be learned. My personal policy is no used guns without a thorough check, as you can never be sure what has been done, even if inspected. Even with new factory guns, I check the safeties first time to the range, and then periodically when I am doing the routine maintenance. Especially on match guns, I periodically measure overtravel, take-up and break to make sure nothing has changed in the trigger.

Another aspect is making sure you have the numbers of EMS and range locations known. Also taking a TCCC course, knowing how to use the gear and making sure you take it with you to the range.
 
Not everyone is qualified to look at the parts of a firearm and know whether or not any of the parts have been Bubbafied ... especially if it's a brand and/or model you're not familiar with.
Click to expand...

True, and we have a lot more people coming into shooting sports who are not gun folks, nor mechanically inclined.

Does she have any recourse against the person who sold it to her, and who assured her it didn't have any problems?
Click to expand...

Of course we discussed it, and I think she would have a good case, but she told me that she was not going to pursue anything.
 
Really bothersome.
I don't know if there is a "qualified gunsmith" to inspect all brands of used guns in my metro area.

A friend had the opposite problem. The super duper tuneup on her match gun was great... for a while. Then it commenced misfiring, so we put in a full strength spring. That worked... for a while. Then it quit shooting altogether.
She had to have most of the super duper tuneup undone to get it back in operation. The super duper tuner offered no warranty work.
 
Jim, Creedmore Sports is a great shop.

Yes, there are "race slick" shops out there doing things that should not be done. It happens in ARs, bolts guns and shotguns too, but it seems most prevalent in pistols.
 
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