Universal Firearms Safety
No matter how safe or expertly a firearm is designed, the operator of the firearm will always be responsible for its safe handling, storage, and deployment. The firearm community agrees that there are basic principles of firearm safety that will prevent injury, property damage, and close calls.
01
TREAT every firearm as if it is loaded:
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Never assume a firearm is unloaded and never treat it that way, even if you watch as it is unloaded. Make it a habit to treat guns like they are loaded all the time.
02
ALWAYS point the muzzle in a safe direction:
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Many firearms injuries are self-inflicted. That means that the muzzle of the firearm was pointed at a part of the shooter's body. A safe direction is a direction where the bullet will travel and harm no one in the event of an unwanted discharge. There are no accidental discharges with firearms, only unwanted discharges.
03
KEEP your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard until ready to shoot:
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If a shooter stumbles with a firearm in one hand and nothing in the other, whatever that person does with their free hand will automatically happen with the hand holding the gun. If a finger is inside the trigger guard, that hand is likely going to close around the pistol grip of the gun and on the trigger causing unwanted discharge.
04
BE certain of your target and what's beyond it:
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Positive target identification is a must. To shoot at something you only think is a legal target is gambling. In the case of human injury, that means gambling with human life. You must be absolutely certain and correct in judgment before deciding to shoot. Otherwise, it's reckless behavior. In addition to identifying the target, a shooter must know that a safe backstop for their bullet is present in every shooting situation. We don't always hit our target, and, in some cases, the bullet passes through the target. A safe backstop guarantees that no one will get hurt.