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-Lurid Crime Tales-

Today's Idiot

2010-03-09

Superintendent accidentally fires gun during class

There's some deja vue here. Back in the 90s, a Davey Crockett impersonator here in Texas discharged his Kentucky rifle while he was telling tall tales to some first graders. The kids were mightily impressed. The administrators and police were not.
BILLINGS, Mont. -- The superintendent of a rural Montana school district says he was showing students his black powder muzzleloader when he accidentally fired the weapon into a classroom wall during a history lesson.
"Firearms accidents were a leading cause of death on the Oregon Trail. That is why---" BOOM!
Dwain Haggard, who used to be a Civil War re-enactor, was showing the gun to five students in Reed Point High School's American history class Friday when it fired.
By this time tomorrow, we'll be able to say that he used to be a superintendent too
No one was injured, and Haggard says he can't explain how the weapon was loaded.
It's simple Dwain. First you put in a measured amount of this black powder stuff....
He says he usually fires a cap during the demonstration, but this time there was a loud bang and the room filled with smoke.

A student who was in the class said the firing of the gun caught everyone off guard.
This isn't LA after all....
"Holy criminy, you just shot the map," the student said.

The ball shot through the "o" in the word "North" on a wall map.
A Confederate gun no doubt.
According to Haggard, the gun was never pointed at the students once he inserted the cap. The Superintendent was facing away from the students, pointing the gun toward the ceiling when he pulled the trigger.

One father told Haggard he laughed until he cried after his son explained what happened.
No doubt this creep think school bus wrecks are the height of comedy.
Haggard says none of the students' parents was upset with him.
Sure. If a school official accidentally fired a gun in my granddaughter's classroom, I would make a point of accidentally butt-stroking him with my AK when I spotted him in the unemployment line.
He described the incident as "bitter irony" because he has tried to increase safety in the school district.

Posted by:Atomic Conspiracy

#5 "Holy criminy, you just shot the map," the student said.

Holy criminy?

Oh, yeah - this is Montana. They say things like that.

Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-03-09 22:57

#4 was he charged? because anyone else would be. Also remember the cop in Pittsburgh that shot himself in the leg while talking too a class?

Posted by: chris 2010-03-09 22:34

#3 It's simple Dwain. First you put in a measured amount of this black powder stuff...

And a minie-ball, if the map was hit. If I was demonstrating a gun like this and had no intention of it firing, I would use black pepper or something.

Posted by: Free Radical 2010-03-09 21:55

#2 Well AC, there's them that has and them that will. Not smart to not check when he had the rifle at home but it's not like he could pull back the bolt and check the chamber. At least it was pointed in a safe direction.

The only way to check a blackpowder rifle is to run a ramrod down the barrel and check the length it goes. Even firing a cap while pointing in a safe direction (in the field) won't work if you have a bad charge.

Looks like he found a way to demonstrate his statement on firearm safety on the Oregon Trail.

Posted by: tipover 2010-03-09 19:38

#1 There are no excuses. It doesn't matter if it's a black powder rifle or a Class III. When you pick up a weapon, you check it. Always. Always. Always. I have NEVER found one of my guns loaded and I can't remember loading it. It doesn't not matter WHAT you are doing, you bloody check the thing.

If you fail to do that, then you are NOT a responsible gun owner.

Posted by: Silentbrick 2010-03-09 19:38

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