"Trigger Finger", best friend or worst nightmare

[Deputy917]

SUBJECT:

[Jim_Linch]

Amen!

Simple rule, but probably the most violated. It all boils down to training of which most officers don't do enough of in the firearms area, and others.:(

[greenlead]

Anybody else notice how many times this rule was blatantly disregarded in "Street Survival"? How am I supposed to respect the great wealth of information that can be found in the book when 75% of the pictures disregard this rule???

[PhilipCal]

Training is the key,and you just can't get enough of it. Great reminder though,and thanks for the post.We all can use that.

[Bodie]

Watch "Cops". :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool: :cool:

[Brushfire]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Deputy917
[B]
Remember one of the golden rules of safe firearm handling?

[kirch]

I just thought about this rule the other day. I was looking through a LE firearms magazine and there was an article about a LE firearms training academy. A photo accompanied the article showing one of the instructors standing in front of the class with an AR15...and his finger resting squarely on the trigger. At least the muzzle was pointed up.:rolleyes:

Just because you're an 'expert' doesn't mean you can't get lax. I also was once reading a knife collecting magazine that showed a prominent knifemaker's shop. Right in the middle of the picture was a vise holding a work-in-progress...with the point hanging out in the air and the razor-sharp edge facing up. One stumble and someone in that shop could end up impaled or severly lacerated. That's one of the basic safety rules of knifemaking -- don't ever leave a knife in that position untended.

The longer you do this job, the easier it is to get complacent. Just tonight I caught myself leaning down to talk to a driver I had stopped and I realized my hands were clasped behind my back. Where the f*ck did I learn that? I gave myself a quick mental kick in the *** and assumed the appropriate stance.

Thanks for the reminder.

[Deputy917]

Originally posted by Brushfire
I never knew about the sympathetic nerve reaction as one of the causes of an AD. It's always driven home about keeping your finger off the trigger, but I never knew that a sympathetic nerve reaction was another one of the reasons why. Thanks! :)

Appreciate the positive comment Brushfire. Many instructor's fail to explain the "why" aspect of this rule. Your sympathetic nerve actually runs from hand-to-hand, via a path across your shoulders/back, you are essentially
hard wired.
It's comparable to the old monkey see monkey do, in that what one hand does the other tries to duplicate. Subsequently, even
the placement of your finger along the slide while a excellent preventative technique, offers no guarantee from the standpoint
how the sub-conscious mind and nerves are pre-programed to respond.

Be-Ready/Be-Safe!

[degrat38]

Originally posted by Deputy917
Appreciate the positive comment Brushfire. Many instructor's fail to explain the "why" aspect of this rule. Your sympathetic nerve actually runs from hand-to-hand, via a path across your shoulders/back, you are essentially
hard wired.
It's comparable to the old monkey see monkey do, in that what one hand does the other tries to duplicate. Subsequently, even
the placement of your finger along the slide while a excellent preventative technique, offers no guarantee from the standpoint
how the sub-conscious mind and nerves are pre-programed to respond.

Be-Ready/Be-Safe! In my academy, we were given the example of a LE hurdling over the fence after a suspect, gun in hand, as the LE grabbed the top of the fence to jump over it, he had his finger on the trigger and just when he did that, he fired the weapon and ended up shooting the suspect in the back. This might help some people to understand what you are talking about.

We were taught 4 universal rules of firearms.

1) Keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire
2) Always treat a weapon as if it were loaded
3) Be aware of your target and what is beyond
4) Never point it at anything you aren't willing to destroy

These are now with me forever, and I can tell you that dry firing helps quite a bit.

Hope this helps.