Firearms Safety Rules Are Not Optional

Remember the rules:

1. All guns are always loaded.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target.
4. Be sure of your target and what is beyond it.

—Jeff Cooper


This story is an example of what happens when you blithely disregard them.

The Detroit Free Press: Commerce Township man ordered to stand trial in shooting of teenager

A-22-year-old Commerce Town­ship veteran accused of a shooting a teenag­er in the face dur­ing a house party in December was bound over for trial today in Novi after waiving his preliminary examination.

Robert Lanzilotti, 22, who served 14 months in Afghanistan, didn't re­alize his pistol was loaded when he shot Cameron Bock, 19, at point blank range Dec. 27 in the 2000 block of Nacona in Commerce Town­ship, police said.

He faces charges of as­sault with a dan­ger­ous weapon, care­less dis­charge of a firearm caus­ing injury, felony firearm and possession of a firearm in the commission of a felony. He has been released on bond.

Oh, and alcohol was likely a factor, as well as some bad, likely alcohol-induced advice:.

Police initially said the shooting appeared to happen as Bock handed the gun to Lanzilotti and it went off. Witnesses later told police Lanzilotti in­tended to scare Bock when the gun went off, and it wasn’t the first time he tried to scare a per­son with a gun.

Court documents say Lanzilotti told investigators different versions of how the shooting occurred before reportedly admitting to pulling the trigger. He told police Bock wanted the party to keep going, but he wanted everyone to leave the house where he lived, and another partygoer suggested he scare the victim with the gun, the documents said.

Yeah, it sure scared him off all right.

Lanzilotti, who joined the U.S. Army Reserves in 2008 and returned from Afghanistan in June 2011, told police he's an expert trained in pistols and teaches gun safety, court records said.

And this guy claims to be an expert trained in pistols and a firearms instructor? Oy Vey.