Man Accidentally Shoots Himself Loading Handgun at Action Pawn

 

The Action Pawn on Knickerbocker Rd and South Bryant lived up to its name this morning, when an older gentleman accidentally shot himself in the hand.

Police scanner traffic indicated that the man is still conscious and breathing. At the scene are SAPD patrol units, Medic 1 and a fire truck. According the scanner, CSI has also been called to the scene.

The man is currently in the ambulance and the store has been closed.

Update 1:10 p.m.

Medic 1 has just sped by the LIVE! offices with lights and sirens on heading to Shannon. CSI has arrived to photograph the scene.

Update 1:48 p.m.

Sergeant Greg Keeling of the San Angelo Police Department explained that the male customer had gone into the store to get a handgun that he had pawned and was unaware the gun was loaded. 

"He was handling the gun and apparently didn't know that it was loaded. He was handling the gun and it discharged. It was an accidental discharge," Keeling said. 

The bullet went through his hand and he was taken to Shannon Medical Center. Sgt. Keeling said the man was in the process of loading the gun before he left the store and accidentally fired it into his hand. 

The gun was a .45 caliber handgun. Sgt. Keeling said there was no criminal intent.

The man is 53 years old and a regular customer of Action Pawn. The store will remained closed for the forseeable future to allow staff time to clean up the blood.

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Speaking of police scanners, is there anywhere I can listen to a San Angelo police scanner online?
At one point it says the gun was loaded. AT another it says he was loading he gun. I have a hard time believing that a pawn shop would keep a loaded gun on the premises, except for use by trained employees. Either way is scary. Was he loading the gun IN THE STORE? I would think that would be against policy, good sense, and probably the law. Same if the gun was already loaded.
I am connecting my scanner to the internet. Was thinking of charging a very small fee - maybe a one-time $5 charge or just any donation you can make. Only reason I would charge that small amount is just to cover bandwidth and costs for needed equipment. Let me know if you're interested - [email protected]
jdc, Fri, 05/23/2014 - 15:43
It was not an accidental discharge. That would be a negligent discharge.
Glad he is going to be ok. What really caught my attention was that at 53 he was considered an "older" gentleman! Made me laugh out loud.
Look into scanners which scan "trunking systems". A conventional analog scanner without "trunking" capabilities is usually limited to channels like railroad, marine or amateur radio. A digital scanner would cover trunked, AND conventional analog but would be a bit more expensive.
No such thing.... NEGLIGENT DISCHARGE. Period.... The gun did as it was designed to do - but the handler was negligent in his duties and responsibilities.
If you are interested in listening to my online scanner feed simply paypal me a donation to [email protected] and I'll email you the link. Click and listen with an internet connection. Very easy. Thanks.
You sure Joe? Because the article says, "Police scanner traffic indicated that the man is still conscious and breathing."
53 Year Old Geezer is correct - Texas Department of Public Safety needs to either mandate retraining or minimum of suspending his license (assuming he has a CHL). His gun went off with a live round - he could have easily hurt a bystander. Loading and unloading a weapon (safely) is one of the core basic lessons of owning a weapon.

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