Man is critically wounded when gun discharges at shop

[HighVelocity]

http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/232307.html

Man is critically wounded when gun discharges at shop
By ALEX BRANCH
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
A customer at a Parker County gun shop was critically wounded Tuesday morning when a handgun discharged as a store employee examined it, authorities said.

Perry L. Cheatham, 69, of Weatherford was shot below his left eye, according to the Parker County Sheriff's Department.

Cheatham went into the Gun Store, 4410 Tin Top Road, with a friend about 10 a.m. and took a seat at the counter, authorities said. At the same time, another customer handed a 9 mm handgun to the employee for inspection.

"The store attendant told deputies that he was attempting to ensure the weapon was empty when it discharged," according to a news release from Sheriff Larry Fowler.

A helicopter ambulance took Cheatham to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth, where a hospital official said he remained in critical condition Monday evening. The shooting is under investigation, Fowler said.

A telephone call to the Gun Store late Monday afternoon was not returned. Fowler described the employee who had been handling the gun when it fired as "very upset."

"To say he was shaken up would be an understatement," Fowler said.

Sheriff's deputies have worked their share of accidental shootings, Fowler said, but Tuesday's was unusual.

"It's pretty rare that it happens in a gun store, where that's the main function -- the selling and trading of firearms," Fowler said.

Alex Branch, 817-390-7689
abranch@star-telegram.com

Many, MANY times I have been swept but people handling guns in gunshops. Employees AND customers alike. I ALWAYS complain and point out the error. The response is ALWAYS the same. Oh, it's not loaded.

[Big Calhoun]

Heh, you beat me to it...

I was just reading that article and my immediate thoughts were:

- How come the customer handed over a loaded weapon to the clerk? Although, we don't know the all the circumstances surronding the exchange -- could have been asking to check a malfunction, customer could have thought the gun was unloaded, the customer could have not been familiar with firearms, etc.

- Why did the clerk have his been on the trigger? But again, we don't have all the specific details.

- Why was it pointed in an unsafe direction? TO me, that's just totally inexcusable and could have prevented the accident no matter what the other factors were.

Tough way to learn firearm handling lessons.

[Mithras61]

Many, MANY times I have been swept but people handling guns in gunshops. Employees AND customers alike. I ALWAYS complain and point out the error. The response is ALWAYS the same. Oh, it's not loaded.

Maybe you should point out to 'em the number of people shot by unloaded guns every year. I like to emphasize Rule #1 (All Guns are ALWAYS loaded!) when they tell me stupid stuff like that.

[JasonH]

That is scary.

I've been in shops numerous times when the people working there wave around guns and point them at anybody in a 180 degree arc in front of them in the process like it's no big deal.

I always get angry when a gun is pointed at me, "unloaded" or not and even if it's for half a second.

There's just no excuse for this kind of thing to happen.

[phddan]

"Perry L. Cheatham, 69, of Weatherford was shot below his left eye,"

Man o man,
I hope it was just a glancing shot and not a straight in shot.

Aint no excuse for not keeping it pointed in a safe direction.

Wonder how long the employee had worked there?

Dan

[jason]

It will definitely be interesting to see this investigation play itself out.

One common mistake by new gun owners is emptying the gun with the magazine in and then removing the magazine. They see the round come out, and they pull the magazine out so it must be empty. Very common mistake in the military too.

Ultimately, the responsibility lies in the individual holding the weapon when it fired. Unless they can prove a malfunction, but that's not very likely if the firearm is a fairly recent model.

Regardless of anything else, the gun should have been pointed in a safe direction.

Very sad.

[Venus Pax]

Prayers sent for a full recovery.

[CompVest]

+1

[TraCoun]

And another ...

TraCoun

[InfoTechCHL2007]

+1

[Target1911]

I just dont understand these types of NDs. I go into gun shops nearly on a daily basis. I too have been swept by customers and employees. I to speak up when this happens. When I get the usual 'its not laoded' I respond with something along the lines of...I dont know that and to me ALL guns are loaded even if I clear them myself. When I am handed a gun,the FIRST thing that happens is the muzzle is pointed in a safe place and then I clear it.

Are ppl so freakin lazy these days that they cant take the time mearly point the gun in a safe direction????

[jason]

This was a big problem when I was in the military. When training we never had live rounds. Many new soldiers had no experience with weapons before they joined. The result, the guns were harmless pieces of equipment that we had to carry around.

I cannot tell you how many times a soldier would place the butt of the M16 on the ground and folded their hands over the muzzle, which was pointing at their head.

I understand the safety concerns with live rounds, but I think it was a disservice to many of these soldiers.

The day before I left Bosnia, I had to give a mandatory class to soldiers in my squad on how to clear the M16 due to the many accidents that were occurring. As I was driving out the next day to catch a C-130, a couple of my soldiers ran up to me and told me that one of my best soldiers just killed a sandbag. He was at the class the day before.

Training is more than a one time notice or session, it requires repetitive instruction.

ALWAYS LOADED, PERIOD!!!!

My heart goes out to the people that learn these lessons the hard way.