From those trained to protect

[franci1911]

SFPD officer shoots self to death!

This young rookie police officer violated most of the basic rules of gun safety.

1. takes out his service revolver out inside a home in a party situation. As a police officer he shouldn't remove his gun from his holster unless there is some action demanding its necessity. He wasn't a training officer. Nor was this an official training enviornment.
2. had been drinking and/or is around others who have been drinking
3. removes the magizene from the gun without checking the chamber. Way too many people get killed thinking the gun was unloaded.
4. Never point a gun at anything that you are not willing to shoot. Never put your finger on the trigger unless you are willing to kill. He placed the gun to his own neck in showing a female friend in a how to scenario on gun retention and pulled the trigger.
5. Know what you backdrop is. More people could have been injured.

My heart does go out to the family, but:

Basic mind-set
Basic rules of safety

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/08/15/BA9ERIE64.DTL

[Carol]

Somewhere, The Colonel is turning in his grave. :(

[franci1911]

That's for sure Carol! Unfortunetly the amount of training that a recruit receives reference to mindset, tactics and range time in the academy is minimal in most police departments. The typical police officer needs to go venture out on his own to bring up his or her level of competence. As long as it meets or exceeds their particular departments standards of operation. For example, I know that qualifing with your service pistol in most police departments in California is less than 70 percent accuracy out of 100 percent. Which translates to alot of Crackbaby deaths and lawsuits for the particular City/Police Department and Officer.

[Carol]

At the FMATalk Meet and Greet, we had a couple of demonstrations from two police officers from Ohio. They have also lamented the lack of firearm and empty-hand training (their department only requires empty-hand training once a year)

However, what happened here was a violation against something the rookie should have been taught on his first day...it was a violation of all of the "Basic 4"...the rules my instructor had me memorize before I first picked up one of his firearms.

I feel very bad for his friends and his family...and my prayers for them as they struggle not only with his loss, but also with knowing that it didn't have to happen.