Anyone point an "unloaded" gun at you?

[Scoob]

When I was about 15 or 16 I was at a friends house. He comes walking out of his parents room with his dads 357 pointing and waving it around. he points it right at me and says "it's not loaded", proceeds to dry fire it. I dove behind a chair, best cover I could find. I never forgave him for that. It took me a while to explain to his dumba..why this was such a big deal.

 

[JCallaway82]

A few weeks back at the gun store actually...

I was standing at the counter. Waiting for some ammo. Guy comes in and is working on his paperwork for his shiny new AR. I'm to his 9, sales clerk to his 12 directly over the counter. I'm looking down into the case, looking at some used guns while I wait for my turn to be helped. I look up to realize that the customer who just received his new gun is pointing it directly at my face. I simply took a step back out of this jackasses sight line and just stared at him with a look that says"W.T.F. are you doing man?"...But, he still didn't notice I was there...or that he was pointing it directly at my face. And kept going about his aimless tinkering with his new toy he apparently knew nothing about....


The clerk didn't acknowledge it either. He is making a sale of course.

That is actually my first time looking straight down the barrel of someone else's gun. definitely unnerving.

 

[CharlesT]

Never had anyone point a gun AT me. Only swept.

But that would really really piss me off. More than I could imagine.

 

[cleardiddion]

A couple years ago I went to a show down in Orlando, a pretty popular one.
Well, it was crowded and I wasn't really paying mind to anything in particular beyond just surveying what I wanted to get in case I won the lottery when I turned around and realized I had an idiot with an SKS leveled right at chest level.

Scared the bejeezus out of me even if it was all zipped up and all.

 

[Sig88]

I've been swept before at ranges and shops but nothing "intentional" just bad handling.

 

[sig220mw]

Back in about 1982 or so I was living in an apartment complex in Alvin, Texas which is about about 30 minutes south of Houston. Behind the complex the owner had 2 or 3 rows of storage buildings. My apartment was in the back end of the complex and the first row just behind. There was a road between the apartment and the buildings. In those days I worked a job that had an on duty starting time of 300am. Because of this I would often park behind the apartment on the road since it made for a much shorter walk. One morning at about 240am I came walking out and opened the door to my truck and started getting in. I hear someone yell at me to put my hands behind my head and slowly walk toward him. I look up and it's a cop and I'm looking down the business end of a riot 12 gauge pump. Needless to say, I did exactly what he told me to do. He called for back up and when the 2nd officer showed up he recognized me from meeting me in the past and knew I lived there and was not breaking into the storage buildings. The other one then apologized for pointing the gun at me and explained that they had just caught some one breaking into another storage building in another part of town. When he pointed that thing at me, I swear the barrel looked big enough to put my fist in. This was no accident and the gun was definitely loaded.

After he apologized I thanked him for 2 things, patrolling my neighborhood and for not pulling the trigger.

 

[coloradokevin]

My friend is a bit of a jerk. He will point his nine,shotgun,Ak, and whatever else he has at me loaded or not.

If I react in any way he will do it more because he thinks the reaction is funny. So I get to sit there and stare at whatever he has pointed at my head,chest,groin, or foot.

I have no idea why some people think that practice is okay, but I actually know someone like that myself. I actually grew up shooting with this guy, and have known him for better than 25 years (he's nearly like family). His folks taught me to shoot and hunt when I was quite young, and they were always very careful and respectful of their firearms.

My friend and I are both in our 30's now, and as adults I've found that my old friend has become rather careless (actually, downright foolish) with his firearms. I used to enjoy shooting and hunting with him on a very regular basis, and have expended many tens of thousands of rounds with him over the course of a few decades. Honestly, if it wasn't for the time I spent plinking with this friend as a child, I doubt I'd have half the shooting skill I do today!

Anyway, these days I try to steer clear of him when he's around guns. He's the type of guy who thinks it's okay to point a loaded gun at his friends, simply because they "know" he won't shoot them. In some ways I think he does this to get a rise out of people, and it's almost like he sees it as something of a game. He actually tries to justify his behavior under the idea that it (allegedly) makes you more comfortable around guns, and therefore more prepared to handle a defensive shooting. Obviously there are some serious logical gaps in that line of thinking. Of course, he's also never used hearing protection due to that very same line of thinking.

Anyway, I had voiced my concerns about his lack of safety when I saw him play a "quick draw" game with one of his consenting work friends a couple of years ago, in which they drew on each other using real (loaded) guns. The clear message of disapproval from me obviously didn't take. On a later occasion he intentionally pointed a gun at me just one time, and once was more than enough for my tastes. Though I knew this friend wouldn't ever intentionally shoot me, I still abide by the more widely accepted practices of safe firearms handling, and had to accept the fact that my friend has become an irresponsible idiot with guns.

After I thoroughly chewed his A$$ for being such a careless fool, and told him I was leaving, he just replied with something along the lines of: 'come on, I've known you for years and I've never shot you yet... you know that I know what I'm doing with a gun'.

Foolishness like that will ultimately result in someone's untimely death, I presume. As I said, this is a friend I've known since grade school, so I do still value the past and I do keep in touch with him. I just don't go shooting with him anymore, and it's unfortunate that it had to come to such an event.

For the person who said they have a similar friend, I'd consider keeping your distance from this person if you want to stay alive. A person who acts like that is almost certainly destined to have a negligent discharge at some point in their life, and you sure don't want it happening when you're standing at the business end of their gun! When someone thinks that kind of behavior is amusing I can only assume that they have very little respect for anyone beyond themselves. Frankly, if my friend wasn't a quasi family member I doubt I'd still talk to him. Even still, I don't intend to shoot with him again until he gets his head on straight, which may or may not ever happen.

 

[dancz]

Three times have been too many for me.

The 1st when hunting ducks a friend, up until that day and certainly not after, fired a 12 ga over the top of me as the ducks rose of the water. It was enough to drop me to the ground and my ears rang for the best part of the week. After the yelling stopped we walked in different directions and I’ve never seen or spoken to him since.

The 2nd when someone I was hunting with was walking behind me and I turned when I heard him work the bolt of his 270. He had the thing pointing straight at me. One step, one grab at the rifle and the bolt was removed. This saw him walking the better part of 20m to retrieve it. He never got his bolt back until he got out of the car at home.

3rd wasn’t quite as bad, more an act of stupidity. At a hunting lodge when there were a pack of kids staying there as well. Two young guys came in with the bolts still in their rifles. They were left in no doubt that they would be following their rifles down the 100m bluff outside the hut if they ever did it again. They looked a bit dumbfounded as the kids looked on but I think they got the point.

Call me tough but I can think of better things to be doing than bleeding.

You should see our range and the behaviour on it. After reading any of the stories above it’s a dream of safety. No guns are carried uncased or un-holstered except on the firing line. Safety zones are around to swap from the case to holster. No one touches a gun except on the firing line or while holstering it in the safety zone and while in the safety zone you are not allowed any ammo. And here are two we are discussing, if you break the 180 deg rule and it’s pointed anywhere but down range or, at any stage you sweep anybody including yourself and your day is over. It’s home for you.
Result is there to see. No hole anywhere except where they should be and the only person to ever have an accident was a cop that shot their own foot while drawing from his holster.

 

[Carter]

I walked in to a gun store near my house one day to browse on the way home from work. I took one step in the door turned towards the right and saw an AR pistol pointed right at my head. The guy behind the counter was showing the guy looking at it something, but I'm sure there are safer places to point and aim a firearm than at the door.

 

[Usmc-1]

I know for some reason people are under the impression that cops are so above this , but I have to tell your they are not , it happens all the time , its irresponsible , obviously that range doesnt have rules and more importantly they dont have range masters in it , monitoring whats going on ! I dont like going to ranges ,I dont know anyone there , if I dont you and your right next to me , I dont trust you either ! You should always be at your guard going there , sure these people more than likely are just like you , however , theres a large amount of the population who go to ranges because they have never fired a gun and there is no rules , just bring (or rent) a gun and go shoot , and shooting toy guns like a Jennings is asking for trajedy just shooting that thing , Im glad you walked a way.....alive

 

[Jungle George]

In Jan of 1970 we had a mad minute on FSB Moose we were all told after the MM was over to get in the bunkers as the cannon cockers were going to fire bee hive rounds across the berm. I dove in the bunker to find a fellow grunt pointing his M16 at me. I pushed his muzzle up and said don't point that at me as I withdrew my smoking hand and then yelled a few obsenities. He never did that again.
If you want to go to a safe range and learn to shoot a rifle as the military use to teach, go to this site; http://www.appleseedinfo.org/

 

[Ala Dan]

Working in a gun shop, after we "clear" a weapon for a "customer inspection"
lots of times they end up pointed right directly at the employee. Its just some
thing that you have too get use to~! Bad habits a'bound, but one
that firearms sales professionals have to learn to live with.

 

[geekWithA.45]

an older woman

As intrinsic as we think Col. Jeff Cooper's 4 rules are to American gun culture, that's obviously not the case, and the proliferation of these rules as the ante for membership is fairly recent. As connected as I was to guns and shooters in my youth, I don't remember these 4 elegant rules, I remember a mishmosh of other safety rules that tried to achieve the same ends.

There are older folks who've never been exposed to our modern fangled ideas, and think that there really is such a thing as an unloaded gun, and that it's OK to point it at people.

There's also plenty of folks who own, and sometimes even shoot guns, but who are not >>members<< of the gun culture, simply because they've never joined.

 

[Tommygunn]

A few years after I got out of college, I was working in a print shop, half of which was Xerox the other was offset printing (this was @ 30 years ago). One of the guys in the offset area, who was a nice enough guy but who clearly was not playing with a full deck brought in a double barrel 12 gauge to work one day. I guess he wanted to show off his gun.
Anyway, I hear him call my name, and look over, and see I am staring down his double barrel. I did a flying leap behind a high volume Xerox machine. It had parts inside I am sure could stop a .50 BMG round ... or atleast seriously deflect it, and trust me, nothing outta a 12 gauge was getting through that thing.
Laughing at this, the shotgun guy says, "it's not loaded!"
Right. I am gonna stand there like a lump on a log while some idjit doofus is pointing a 12 gauge at me and actually trust my life to a gun I haven't examined being UNloaded.
The guy was not working there much longer .......

 

[Nushif]

At a hunting lodge when there were a pack of kids staying there as well. Two young guys came in with the bolts still in their rifles.

Wait. They make you disassemble your rifle?! Why?

 

[1911ponygirl]

I taught my dog to play dead by pointing my finger at her, and yelling "bang!" This was before I had any guns. There was a point where I THOUGHT about using a non-firing replica instead of my finger, but I decided not to. So when I got real guns, my stepdad (NOT a nice guy) kept trying to convince me I should use the real guns.... He also had no concept of not pointing whenever I showed him something new that I got. This is a guy that's had plenty of guns over the years. I really don't understand why people don't know this. It's basic. This guy also took a 22 pistol to a family reunion and was seen fumbling with it, dropping it on the ground, and heard mumbling about how he should just shoot everyone there... Nice, huh? Suffice it to say, I don't let him anywhere near my own guns anymore, and I watch him around my dog.

 

[Powderman]

Nushif...
Not trying to jack the thread, but remember the three levels of military authority:

GENERAL authority is the authority that sny Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine exercises as non-commissioned, Warrant or commissioned officers over those of lesser rank. NCO's are specifically included, in that it is part of the NCO's job to make on the spot corrections of enlisted personnel when necessary.

COMMAND authority is the authority that an NCO in charge, Warrant Officer or Officer in charge exercises over those placed in his or her command on a permanent basis.

SPECIFIC authority can be vested in anyone, regardless of rank, who is placed in charge of a project or under emergent circumstances.

Thus, it is perfectly acceptable for an NCO to correct an enlisted Soldier--or even another NCO of lesser rank--under any circumstance.

 

[sig220mw]

In a crowded gun shop I can see where a barrel might be pointed at someone for a second or two but when it is discovered it needs to be corrected. After reading some of the gun range stories on this subject I have to say that the club range at which I shoot is very safe indeed. I've never had a bad experience there, at least not yet.

 

[Nushif]

Nushif...
Not trying to jack the thread, but remember the three levels of military authority:

GENERAL authority is the authority that sny Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine exercises as non-commissioned, Warrant or commissioned officers over those of lesser rank. NCO's are specifically included, in that it is part of the NCO's job to make on the spot corrections of enlisted personnel when necessary.

COMMAND authority is the authority that an NCO in charge, Warrant Officer or Officer in charge exercises over those placed in his or her command on a permanent basis.

SPECIFIC authority can be vested in anyone, regardless of rank, who is placed in charge of a project or under emergent circumstances.

Thus, it is perfectly acceptable for an NCO to correct an enlisted Soldier--or even another NCO of lesser rank--under any circumstance.

Truth and while it is acceptable, the first thing that came to my mind when I read the post we're talking about is the proverbial bus driver or lunch lady yelling at a full platoon of soldiers.
As you described there, it is perfectly allowable for anyone to correct behavior that is gregariously wrong (as is the case with pointing muzzles at something friendly and alive) however, that doesn't stop me from feeling rather slighted when an NCO (which makes it a lot less "grrr-inducing") makes a public spectacle out of one of my guys. As one of the rules for good public military bearing states "counsel in private, praise in public" I find it questionable to make a prolonged and public spectacle out of any particular individual and doubly so when the person making the spectacle doesn't have the knowledge to wield the authority in a manner befitting the station, which is the case with the usual suspects ... i.e. bus drivers, lunch ladies and the sort.
A public spectacle while on the surface "correcting behavior" has some serious negative effects on the long term leadership of a unit. And usually interrupts the flow of training.
Funny enough I keep picking on bus drivers and lunch ladies, when I know full well there is more than those two who regularly do that kind of thing. In any case, I'll stop being OT now. We've both laid out our reasons well enough.

 

[Ole Coot]

A few times, not ever by the same person. First words out of my mouth at a CC class is anyone with a loaded handgun or live ammo automatically fails. Had a few make a quick trip out to their vehicles. I am so bad a friend of mine that is like me will show me a handgun, checking it first just to make sure, I take the handgun and check it myself and if I show him one we do the same thing. Maybe kinda silly to some but a habit over the years.

 

[8654Maine]

^^^^This.

I always double check. I've taught that to my kids as well.

 

[parsimonious_instead]

Frozen:

I recently read an article by Mas Ayoob in which he says that "scoping" someone can actually be a serious, chargeable offense.
Far better to use binocs for spotting/scouting, and save the use of weapon-mounted optics for taking a shot.

I read a story recently about a mountainous area that has a surprising amount of friction between the hunters and hikers that both use the place. "I saw you through my scope" is a supposed sadistic taunt hikers occasionally hear when passing by a hunting party.

 

[Germany]

ALWAYS check the chamber on a weapon when you pick it up or some hands it to you.

I do this for every gun someone hand me also. does not matter if I just seen then stick a cleaning rod down the barrel and it came out the chamber. I still visual and touch check.

 

[foghornl]

Got pointed at ONCE at an indoor range...

My speech to Guilty Party, loud enough to be heard across the line {After SECOND friendly advisory to watch his muzzle direction}:

"If is see the business end of that gun pointed my way again, I shall consider that as a Hostile Action, and you can wager your life that I WILL respond accordingly."

Range master removed said party from the firing line.

 

[Nushif]

"If is see the business end of that gun pointed my way again, I shall consider that as a Hostile Action, and you can wager your life that I WILL respond accordingly."

So you threatened to shoot them ... and *they* got removed?