Man Shoots Self After Spotting Skunk

UPI ^ | Oct. 4, 2010

[nickcarraway]

Police in Florida said a man attempting to take care of a skunk on his friend's property accidentally shot himself in the hand and face while loading a rifle.

The Manatee County Sheriff's Office said the 31-year-old Sarasota man was at a friend's house Friday night and attempted to load a .22-caliber rifle after they spotted a skunk in the yard, the Bradenton (Fla.) Herald reported Monday.

Police said the man, who did not know there was already a round in the chamber, had his right hand on the barrel when he accidentally hit the trigger and a bullet injured his fingers and lodged itself in his left cheek.

The sheriff's office said the man's injuries did not appear life threatening and he was alert when they arrived on the scene.

[JustaDumbBlonde]

"That must have stunk.....:o)"

You've got a real nose for details in a story.

[Andonius_99]

Is that you, Tim Dorsey? ;-)

[null and void]

Please, do us a favor. Don't EVER own, or even touch a firearm.

[BJClinton]

shot himself in the hand and face while loading a rifle

Here come the Magic Rimfire Bullet theories.

[Joe 6-pack]

"I'm trying to picture how this happened and for some reason I just can't."

It almost sounds like he was trying to muzzle-load it. I wonder where his ram rod ended up.

[Oztrich Boy]

Police in Florida said a man attempting to take care of a skunk on his friend's property

Unusual pets story?

[Squantos]

Gotta love the funny Freepers.....Stay Safe !

[fr_freak]

Please, do us a favor. Don't EVER own, or even touch a firearm.

Sorry, buddy, but I was a grunt in the US Army. I know how to handle firearms properly. So piss off.

[null and void]

And you still don’t know that there can be a live round in the chamber even after the magazine has been ejected?

Remarkable.

[fr_freak]

And you still don’t know that there can be a live round in the chamber even after the magazine has been ejected?

Maybe an incompetent boob, perhaps such as yourself, would need to be afraid of having a round in the chamber, but for those of us who have actually spent time in the military, rather than reading about it in "Soldier of Fortune" magazine, we know how in control of our weapons we are at all times. In other words, even if you were at a live-fire range, or in actual combat previously, once you clear your weapon, a round is not to going to magically make its way into the chamber at some point during the day. A soldier has his rifle with him at ALL TIMES once it is issued to him, so if you've cleared it, you know its empty and you don't have to go through mindless zero-tolerance shenanigans to show everybody how safety conscious you are. You check your weapon when it issued to you and keep it at all times, you check it before and after ranges, you check it when returning from a combat zone to the rear (and various times in-between, not to mention those times when you clean it). Only an incompetent moron would need to assume that his weapon was loaded after he already cleared it.

You obviously don't know a thing about it, so quit trying to act like an expert.

[pillut48]

LOL. Hence the “honorary” mention. ;-)