imported post
(Note to Admin: feel free to move or delete as there is a discussion in the True Tales section -- http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum60/17276.html)
Howdy... long time lurker, first time poster and lifelong supporter of 2A rights. Now that's out of the way, I wanted to post this (cross-post, I know) in the Colorado forum as this just happened up in Fort Collins:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/17716185/detail.html
(text will be posted at the end)
I'm glad to know our Colorado laws allow the use of a firearm to protect not only yourself but others from a serious threat of physical injury or death, this situation seems to put it to the test while a common-sense look at the situation carries with it some pretty important lessons. Something which really made me sit up and pay attention was the discharge was accidental and a result of what appears to be a hand-to-hand fight while one person came to the fight armed with a handgun.
Had the 'shooter' in this case been overcome while directly engaging the BG and his entourage, it seems too likely one could be easily overcome and the gun could turn into a tool for the wrong folks in the fight. Also, jumping into the fight with a gun already drawn, while not necessarily unthinkable, seems a little excessive from an outside perspective. Granted, having it in the vehicle and probably not wearing a holster means it's got to go somewhere. Good sense in that case would probably tell me to keep distance and work to intervene without getting so close my gun could be taken away or accidentally discharged in a struggle (which is what led to the BG getting shot).
I'm sure there's someone out here with knowledge of the event or the folks involved -- this isn't meant to criticize, but to look at the situation objectively and take any lessons away from it. At the end of the day, though, much respect to the shooter -- a paramedic -- who immediately began to render aid.
The article:
DENVER -- A paramedic who accidentally shot a man and then treated him, will not be charged prosecutors said Tuesday.Police said the paramedic, Cody Bettcher, was driving his sister to a party in Fort Collins in September.Outside the home, four drunk men started harassing Bettcher's sister. A friend in Bettcher's truck jumped out and confronted the group but one of the drunk men, David Patterson, began trying to provoke him into a fight, said District Attorney spokeswoman Linda Jensen.
When Patterson shoved Bettcher's sister, she slapped him back and Bettcher grabbed his handgun, jumped out his truck, pointing his gun up in the air, said Fort Collins police spokeswoman Rita Davis.Bettcher said he then walked to the group, told them to step away, and was then punched in the face by Patterson, Davis said.Bettcher punched Patterson while holding the handgun, and "the gun accidentally discharged," Davis said. Patterson was hit in the shoulder.“He intended to hit him with the butt of the gun; the handle of the gun, when he did that the gun discharged,” Davis said.Bettcher ordered his sister to call 911, while he grabbed his paramedic rescue bag and locked up his gun, police said.
He then took the phone from his sister, told police what had happened and rendered aid, Davis said.Patterson, 22, was transported to the Medical Center of the Rockies, where he had surgery on his shoulder and was discharged, police said.Bettcher was arrested after the shooting. He was cooperative with investigators while Patterson was vulgar and uncooperative, Jensen said.Colorado law allowed for a person to use physical force in for self-defense or to defend a third party. Prosecutors said Bettche was acting to defend his sister.
(Note to Admin: feel free to move or delete as there is a discussion in the True Tales section -- http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum60/17276.html)
Howdy... long time lurker, first time poster and lifelong supporter of 2A rights. Now that's out of the way, I wanted to post this (cross-post, I know) in the Colorado forum as this just happened up in Fort Collins:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/17716185/detail.html
(text will be posted at the end)
I'm glad to know our Colorado laws allow the use of a firearm to protect not only yourself but others from a serious threat of physical injury or death, this situation seems to put it to the test while a common-sense look at the situation carries with it some pretty important lessons. Something which really made me sit up and pay attention was the discharge was accidental and a result of what appears to be a hand-to-hand fight while one person came to the fight armed with a handgun.
Had the 'shooter' in this case been overcome while directly engaging the BG and his entourage, it seems too likely one could be easily overcome and the gun could turn into a tool for the wrong folks in the fight. Also, jumping into the fight with a gun already drawn, while not necessarily unthinkable, seems a little excessive from an outside perspective. Granted, having it in the vehicle and probably not wearing a holster means it's got to go somewhere. Good sense in that case would probably tell me to keep distance and work to intervene without getting so close my gun could be taken away or accidentally discharged in a struggle (which is what led to the BG getting shot).
I'm sure there's someone out here with knowledge of the event or the folks involved -- this isn't meant to criticize, but to look at the situation objectively and take any lessons away from it. At the end of the day, though, much respect to the shooter -- a paramedic -- who immediately began to render aid.
The article:
DENVER -- A paramedic who accidentally shot a man and then treated him, will not be charged prosecutors said Tuesday.Police said the paramedic, Cody Bettcher, was driving his sister to a party in Fort Collins in September.Outside the home, four drunk men started harassing Bettcher's sister. A friend in Bettcher's truck jumped out and confronted the group but one of the drunk men, David Patterson, began trying to provoke him into a fight, said District Attorney spokeswoman Linda Jensen.
When Patterson shoved Bettcher's sister, she slapped him back and Bettcher grabbed his handgun, jumped out his truck, pointing his gun up in the air, said Fort Collins police spokeswoman Rita Davis.Bettcher said he then walked to the group, told them to step away, and was then punched in the face by Patterson, Davis said.Bettcher punched Patterson while holding the handgun, and "the gun accidentally discharged," Davis said. Patterson was hit in the shoulder.“He intended to hit him with the butt of the gun; the handle of the gun, when he did that the gun discharged,” Davis said.Bettcher ordered his sister to call 911, while he grabbed his paramedic rescue bag and locked up his gun, police said.
He then took the phone from his sister, told police what had happened and rendered aid, Davis said.Patterson, 22, was transported to the Medical Center of the Rockies, where he had surgery on his shoulder and was discharged, police said.Bettcher was arrested after the shooting. He was cooperative with investigators while Patterson was vulgar and uncooperative, Jensen said.Colorado law allowed for a person to use physical force in for self-defense or to defend a third party. Prosecutors said Bettche was acting to defend his sister.
