Firearm defects take toll

Firearms with manufacturing defects or that lack safety features are involved in thousands of unintentional shootings each year. In many instances, human error and poor judgment play a role. But firearms experts who support manufacturing standards for gun makers say human error and possible misuse should be taken into account when designing weapons.

The National Safety Council advises designers to "anticipate common areas and methods of abuse and take steps to eliminate or minimize the consequences associated with such action."

In many cases of unintentional and accidental shootings, the guns provided no protection against human error. The Detroit News looked at more than 1,000 shootings across the country going back decades. Some were purely accidental, some human error, but many could have been mitigated if the guns had addition safety features, say a number of firearms experts. Among the cases The News reviewed:

What we have here is simply a list of "accidents" that the Detroit News contends could have been prevented by a government regulatory agency. I contend that most could have been prevented by the gun owner following the simple rules of gun safety. Let's cover them one by one.

AMT .380 Back-up semiautomatic

Safety issue: No magazine safety and no loaded chamber indicator.

On Dec. 23, 1992, a Texas gun dealer who sold firearms from his garage removed the magazine from the AMT pistol to give prospective buyer Ricardo Antonio a demonstration. The dealer didn?t realize there was a round left in the chamber and he shot and killed Antonio.

The dealer pointed the gun at someone and pulled the trigger, breaking the rules of gun safety.

AMT .380 Back-up semiautomatic

Safety issue: No magazine disconnect.

In 1989, Daniel Milewski, then 13, took the magazine out of the pistol like he had seen done many times on television. Milewski, of Pennsylvania, thought the gun was empty and began twirling it with his finger in the trigger guard. The gun went off and shot him in the face.

The child had unsupervised access to a firearm and was playing with it. In the course of his play, he pointed the gun at himself and pulled the trigger. Both the child and his parents broke the rules of gun safety.

Lorcin 9mm semiautomatic

Safety issue: No drop safety.

Timmy Jones, a 35-year-old Kentucky truck driver, was killed in 1996 when his Lorcin semiautomatic dropped and discharged a bullet into his stomach. He died of massive internal injuries and bleeding.

This one I'll grant, although obviously dropping a loaded gun is a little careless. But the market offers many firearms with drop safeties, so the option to purchase one was available to this individual. If you drop a knife on your foot, you will end up with a knife in your foot -- sometimes, you just have to be careful not to drop things.

RG-26

Safety issue: Firing pin.

Clarence Lemmon purchased an RG pistol for $99.95 on Dec. 10, 1980, to protect his Texas business. While attempting to put a round in the chamber, the firing pin dropped before the chamber closed and the pistol went off, firing a bullet through his left hand.

This one is borderline. The gun was not pointed in a safe direction and it sounds like the owner was not exactly familiar with proper firearms operation. It's hard to say who was at fault without knowing exactly what happened.

Tec-9, 9mm

Safety issue: No magazine disconnect.

Detroit resident Darnell Crawford, 16, was shot in the back and killed in 1987 by a friend while they and two other friends were eating pizza at home.

Crawford had taken the Tec-9 semiautomatic pistol from a closet and removed the ammunition magazine. A round remained in the chamber. Crawford passed the gun to a friend who, seeing the clip removed, thought the gun was empty. The friend, who got pizza grease on the gun, tried wiping it clean before giving it back to Crawford. In doing so, he pulled the trigger and the gun went off, striking Crawford.

Trigger pulled, gun pointed in unsafe direction.

Hawes Firearms Co. Western Marshall revolver

Safety issue: No drop safety

Clara Sue Cobb was wounded and left a paraplegic after a Western Marshall revolver on the back floorboard of a car in which she was a passenger discharged without the trigger being pulled. The Louisiana woman was 18 at the time.

Couple thoughts here. First, the picture in the article depicts an old-west-type revolver rather than a modern design -- such a historical design might be expected to lack modern safety features. Second, how do they know the trigger was not pulled? Not deliberately pulled, sure, but any firearm bouncing around on the floorboards of a car could easily snag on something. And bouncing around on the floorboards of a car is not exactly safe gun handling in any case.

F.I.E. Model D38 derringer

Safety issue: No hammer block, no transfer bar and no rebound safety.

Mary Goodman was killed when a derringer dropped and discharged without the trigger being pulled. Alvah Yates was killed at work when a derringer fell from a deliveryman?s pocket as he stooped to put down a crate of milk. The gun struck the ground and discharged, hitting Yates.

Don't drop your gun if it's cheap; if you intend to drop your gun, buy one with a drop safety. 'nuff said.

Winchester ?94

Safety issue: Firing mechanism problem.

Lois Mamo was severely injured in 1978 when a Winchester 94 fired without the trigger being pulled. The gun went off when a family member in another room in their Michigan home adjusted the gun?s lever, without pulling the trigger.

The bullet went through the kitchen wall, a stove and pots on the counter before striking Mamo in the stomach and arm. Bullet fragments hit her liver and nearly severed her right hand. She spent 62 days in the hospital and has had numerous operations. She still has shrapnel in her body.

Last month, Michigan gunsmith John Tunney Jr. was repairing a customer?s Winchester ?94, similar to the one that wounded Mamo 25 years earlier. As Tunney took the rifle, the customer mentioned that there was a round in the chamber and the rifle had a tendency to fire without the trigger being pulled when the lever was adjusted.

Tunney pointed the rifle at a sand bag designed to capture bullets and racked the lever without touching the trigger. On the very first attempt, the rifle discharged.

This sounds like a legitimate flaw, though whether it's a design flaw or something that occurs due to damage in the field is unclear. But note the difference in outcomes! When you follow the rules of gun safety, even if the gun is defective and goes off, no one gets hurt.