A Word on Gun Safety
Current mood: ballistic
Category: ballistic Life

[Yeah, they just keep on coming - Sorry, Sara!]

It's hard to think of a more reliable class of devices than modern firearms.  With a very modest bit of care, they discharge when desired to four nines or better (99.99%+ of the time).  No modern model will fire without a trigger pull or a *very* hard impact.  They simply do what's asked of them, by design, no more or less.

Anyone can get through a whole lifetime handling these tools without getting hurt, if they follow a few simple rules, often given as the "four laws".  One version is here: http://www.racineidpa.com/The4LawsofGunSafety.htm

These "Four Laws" have been around, serving well, for a long time.  But I'm afraid we now need to add another rule to the list.
"DO NOT STRAP A LOADED .44 MAGNUM TO A DRUNK REDNECK WOMAN IN A TRAILER WITH A RODENT PROBLEM"

"Woman tries to kill mice, shoots self"
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/...
"A Potter Valley woman wounded herself and a man July 3 while attempting to kill mice with a .44-caliber Magnum revolver, according to the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office.

The woman, 43, had drawn the gun from a holster under her left arm, intending to shoot mice scurrying across the floor of a small travel trailer on Highway 20 in Potter Valley, according to the Sheriff's Office.

The revolver instead slipped from her hand and fired as it struck the floor, according to the Sheriff's Office."

Yeah, a cocked revolver will do that.  Keep the hammer down on an empty chamber.

"The bullet went through the woman's right kneecap, then hit keys hanging on the belt loop of a 42-year-old man in the trailer, officials said. The bullet glanced off the keys and tore a hole in the man's pants.

The bullet grazed the man's groin before stopping in his coin pocket, where it was recovered for evidence, according to the Sheriff's Office."

Some guys have all the luck.

The story gets better - here's the follow-up.
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/...

"Debra Due, 43, was trying to eliminate mice in a travel trailer on her property for a new tenant who was moving in when the accidental shooting occurred, said Mendocino County Sheriff's Capt. Kurt Smallcomb.

The tenant and a man had begun moving the woman's belongings into the trailer at 9:30 p.m. July 2, he said.

At about 1:20 a.m. July 3, Due, who was intoxicated, went down to the trailer with her gun, holstered under her left arm, Smallcomb said.

"Being a good landlord, she comes down to take care of this mouse problem," he said."

No - a good landlord would use THE RIGHT TOOL FOR THE JOB (handgun shotshells - handy stuff).  Or call a professional exterminator - but what fun is that?

A bit about the terminal ballistics.  It's a .44 magnum bullet vs. a mouse.  This is a big heavy bullet, up to 3/4 oz, which still manages to go supersonic in a handgun. It rips through the air with about enough energy to heat Al Gore's house for a month.  The mouse would just barely contain that much energy - if accellerated to warp 9.

Visually, roughly to scale,



One more follow-up to the story,
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/...
" A Potter Valley woman who wounded herself while attempting to kill mice with a .44 Magnum revolver won't face criminal charges, authorities said Thursday.

The Mendocino County District Attorney's Office had been considering whether to charge Debra Due, 43, with negligent discharge of a firearm.

"There's insufficient criminal intent," Chief Deputy District Attorney Jill Ravitch said Thursday. "Sometimes incredibly stupid things don't amount to criminal acts.""

Currently listening : Mickey Mouse Clubhouse By Various Artists Release date: By 2006-10-03

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