'Always be a good boy, don't ever play with guns'
Citizen's Police Academy: Week 3
Adam Testa/Associate Online Editor
Issue date: 9/29/06 Section: Online Exclusives
Editor's Note: This is the third article in a 15-part weekly series detailing Associate Online Editor Adam Testa's experiences in Charleston's Citizens Police Academy program.
"My momma always told me, 'Always be a good boy, don't ever play with guns."
These lyrics from Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" have been a motto for my life, until Thursday night at least.
The closest thing I had ever used to a firearm was a Super Soaker 3000, but on Thursday night, I had what was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity because of Citizens Police Academy.
On Thursday night, our class has the opportunity to use a variety of the weapons the police department uses. The firearms we had the opportunity to use ranged from a AR-15 (the civilian version of an M16) to a sub-machine gun to handguns to a 12-gauge shot gun.
Though I was extremely nervous when we walked out onto the firing range, the experience wound up being one of the most fun of my life. The first gun I shot in my life was a sub-machine gun, and that feeling was amazing.
But the whole night was not the fun and games of firing the weapons. It was also important that we learned gun safety and how to properly handle firearms.
Sgt. Brad Oyer taught us the three rules of handing a firearm. The first rule is one of the most important, he said.
"Never point a firearm at something you're not willing to destroy," Oyer said.
This includes other living individuals, parts of your own body or physical property.
The second rule of firearm safety is to keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.
And the third rule is to know what's behind your target. This is because some weapons, such as certain rifles, are powerful enough to go through almost any surface, from trees to houses.
When Oyer was 20, he started taking target practice with a rifle on a telephone pole. He started wondering where his shots were going, and he walked over to the pole to find it littered with tiny holes going completely through the pole.
"My momma always told me, 'Always be a good boy, don't ever play with guns."
These lyrics from Johnny Cash's "Folsom Prison Blues" have been a motto for my life, until Thursday night at least.
The closest thing I had ever used to a firearm was a Super Soaker 3000, but on Thursday night, I had what was probably a once in a lifetime opportunity because of Citizens Police Academy.
On Thursday night, our class has the opportunity to use a variety of the weapons the police department uses. The firearms we had the opportunity to use ranged from a AR-15 (the civilian version of an M16) to a sub-machine gun to handguns to a 12-gauge shot gun.
Though I was extremely nervous when we walked out onto the firing range, the experience wound up being one of the most fun of my life. The first gun I shot in my life was a sub-machine gun, and that feeling was amazing.
But the whole night was not the fun and games of firing the weapons. It was also important that we learned gun safety and how to properly handle firearms.
Sgt. Brad Oyer taught us the three rules of handing a firearm. The first rule is one of the most important, he said.
"Never point a firearm at something you're not willing to destroy," Oyer said.
This includes other living individuals, parts of your own body or physical property.
The second rule of firearm safety is to keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.
And the third rule is to know what's behind your target. This is because some weapons, such as certain rifles, are powerful enough to go through almost any surface, from trees to houses.
When Oyer was 20, he started taking target practice with a rifle on a telephone pole. He started wondering where his shots were going, and he walked over to the pole to find it littered with tiny holes going completely through the pole.
The Daily Eastern News encourages on-topic, civil discussion on its articles posted online. It is our policy not to screen comments before they are posted or edit them after they are posted. However, we reserve the right to remove comments that are off-topic, malicious, libelous or include excessive foul language. The DEN also reserves the right to turn off all comments on any story it deems necessary.
Comments violating copyright law will also be removed.
Users who repeatedly violate this policy will be banned from commenting.
If you have any questions on our comment policy or wish to report a comment that you feel violates these standards, please e-mail a link to the article to our Online Editor at DENNews.com@gmail.com.
Viewing Comments 1 - 1 of 1
Ammo
posted 7/27/10 @ 11:08 AM CST
I agree. Gun owners have to be mentally and psychologically prepared to use their guns. A lot of people these days buy guns for self-defense purposes, but most have never really contemplated on what it would be like to actually fire the gun at somebody. (Continued…)
Post a Comment