Negligent discharge, please be kind

Status
Not open for further replies.
D

darwin-t

Member
Joined
Oct 9, 2005
Messages
161
I messed up big time. Even though I've always considered myself to use safe practices when handling firearms, I failed to do so Saturday. It ended with a 230 grain .45 ACP Hydro Shok bullet putting four - count 'em four holes in my leg.

Warning: the link is pretty graphic. Open at your own risk.

http://dishhead.home.insightbb.com/leg.html

I'm posting this on every forum I participate in so that others can learn from my mistake.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Wow! Glad you're ok! Good reminder for everyone to never point at anything you don't intend to shoot.
 
Wow, you have officially passed a class in the School of Hard Knocks. Gladd to see that you are OK but I will assume it will be a while before you are kicking again. Thank you for being man enough to share your lesson. We all, need reminding every now and then.
 
darwin-t, I sympathize with you. My brother did something similar many years ago. He decided it was a good idea to put a cocked 1911 in his pocket along with keys, change, pocket knife, etc. The round entered his upper thigh, and exited just above his knee cap. I know that at times like this it is hard to consider yourself lucky, but you really are, as was he. Lucky to be alive, lucky to have your leg. Thanks for sharing this graphic illustration, if it jogs one of us that handles guns on a more or less daily basis to be a little more safe and mindful about our gun handling, then it will have accomplished a great deal. I wish you well and hope you heal quickly.
 
First off, its a good thing that you are ok and took quick action when you saw blood pumping out of that second exit wound. I fear that many people would not know what to do.

I have to ask, in all seriousness, what did it feel like to get shot? I would assume that your body would go into an almost quazi-shock like state and pain would not be on the forefront of your mind. But did you feel anything? How long did it take for your ears to stop ringing?

Good luck on the road to recovery. How long did the doc say it would take before you would be back to 'normal'?
 
I'll tell you as well as I can remember it. When the gun went bang, it surprised the heck out of me, of course. It took about a half a second to realize what happened. The sound didn't seem as loud as I remember when I shot without hearing protection at the range. I chalk that up to the fact that the gun was down away from my face.

Then I realized that I was bleeding. I honestly don't remember if it was pain or the wetness of the blood. This all took maybe two seconds. I stood up and saw the blood all over my jeans and hollered upstairs for my wife to call an ambulance. I pulled my jeans off to see what was going on - I had a pair of longjohns on under them.There was a bag of rags and old towels laying there and I grabbed a handtowel which barely reached around my leg, so I grabbed the ends and twisted them. Then I walked/crawled up the stairs and laid down up there on my back and propped my leg up on a bucket. I noticed the pain by then and was afraid I was going to pass out - I had a cold sweat on my forehead and felt kinda woozy.By the time the medics got there, the bleeding had pretty much stopped. My leg hurt SOOOOOOO bad. They wouldn't give me any pain meds - I had to wait on the ER doc. 4 doses of morphine before it calmed down. I'm going to my family doc today and plan on getting my hands on my XRays.

All the ER did was wash the blood off of my leg, took an X Ray, listened to the pulse and checked what was still numb. Gave me a tetanus shot, a sript for antibiotics and Lortabs. Wrapped it up with pressure bandages and sent me home.

Don't try this at home, kids.
 
AD into the legs

Wow,sorry to hear of your misfortune.I had a brain fart AD when I was 10 yrs old carrying a pellet gun in the woods.Although the pellet missed my right foot,my Dad never let me forget that incident.
That is one tough way to test ammo.Hope you heal up fast.Good Luck !
 
Darwin,

Thanks for the safety reminder. We all can learn from this lesson.

I am glad that you didn't hit anything bad, and wish you a speedy and full recovery.

It took allot of guts to fess up to something like this.

Now it is time to reax and heal.

If there is anything I can do let me know.

Thanks,

Chris
 
I know it had to be hard to fess up, not as hard as dealing with the trauma and healing, but hard. I do so appreciate your doing so, as it is a reminder to all of us this could happen anytime anywhere. Good luck, and fast healing.
 
That's probably one of the best documented NDs I've seen in a while. Keep us posted on the xrays though, I'm curious to see how much was left in your leg.

Suprised nobody has commented on the irony of your username though...
 
I'm very glad you did no more damage than you did.That round and caliber can do some SERIOUS stuff in the wrong places.

Wishing you a full and speedy recovery.
 
Yes, much respect for admitting to this and even posting pictures. Im glad you were not hurt more or worse...

"This incident happened because I got so used to handling guns and taking them apart and putting them together that safety measures became automatic. This is a good thing when you're talking about keeping your finger away from the trigger until the gun is sighted on a target. It's bad when it involves checking to see if a gun is unloaded."
Click to expand...

That is the thing. This should serve as a reminder to all to not become complacent. I am a little guilty of being complacent in the wrong areas of gun safety myself. You are right though, muscle memory for the finger off the trigger is good, muscle memory for the pysical, and visual inspection for a live round can be bad. Thats one thing i hope i never become that complacent with.
 
Darwin, with a name like that you know you need to be extra careful!

One round, four holes. Imagine what the gun grabbers could do with a statistic like that. Single shot weapons could be considered "high capacity".

How does that Tidy Cat work at soaking up blood from the concrete floor?

Seriously, there but for the grace of God go I. Your web page says "don't be stupid like me". Please consider changing that. Your post demonstrates enlightenment, not stupidity. NO ONE is immune from the occasional cranial flatulence.

Thanks for the great post. Be safe.
 
Ouchie! My gun shot wounds in my shoulder and neck were bloodier because of arterial damage, but your wound channel takes the cake!

Well Guess Hydras do expand indeed!
 
Last edited:
Thank you for the reminder. I hope you are back to 100% soon. You sharing your story will ultimately save someone much grief.
 
Safety Reminders

Thanks for sharing. It is important for all of us to remember that these accidents don't just happen to inexperienced or stupid people. These accidents happen to REAL people, often with years of experience.

Last time I went to the range, I had a gentle reminder. I finished firing, and turned towards my friend before doing the standard chamber check. The magazine was empty, and the chamber was supposed to be. At the last second , I stopped and cleared the pistol -- more as a tribute to the drill sergeants from my past than anything. :what: imagine my surprise and chagrin when I found a round in the chamber ready to go!

Thanks again for opening yourself up for criticism from millions of strangers for a split second mistake.
 
Ouch, glad to hear you're largely ok. Best wishes for a speedy recovery and hopefully this will remind us all to be extra careful.

Also I hope you don't mind a little dark humor, but I find your username kind of funny given the situation :)
 
I had an accidental discharge once into the ground while I was walking with my Beretta, muzzle to the ground. It was accidental so I wasn't expecting it, and it happenned because I was a little too comfortable with guns at that point , but not very comfortable with this gun in particular. About an inch away from my foot. I always remember that incident as an important lesson. I would have likely lost a toe.

It looks like your lucky-you could have broken your leg on top of the other wounds. Get well soon and I'm sorry for your injuries.
 
Hey, how about a little warning in the original post saying it's pretty graphic? Not everyone wants to see a picture of that during breakfast.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

R
  • Locked
Negligent Discharge; ongoing account
Replies
5
Views
891
El Tejon
E
D
  • Locked
'Disturbing Trend' Seen In Negligent Discharges Of Weapons In Afghanistan
2
Replies
26
Views
2K
mrcr0603
M
D
  • Locked
Negligent Discharge at Home
2 3
Replies
65
Views
3K
coylh
C
W
  • Locked
negligent discharge
2
Replies
33
Views
2K
N3rday
N
P
  • Locked
How Unintentional Discharges Happen
2 3
Replies
67
Views
6K
teknical
T
Back
Top