An unintentional discharge is the event of a
firearm
A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions).
The first firearms originate ...
discharging (firing) at a time not intended by the user. An unintended discharge may be produced by an incompatibility between firearm design and usage, such as the phenomenon of
cooking off
Cooking off (or thermally induced firing) is unfired weapon ammunition explosion, exploding prematurely due to heat in the surrounding environment. The term is used both for detonation of ammunition not loaded into a weapon, and unintended firin ...
a round in a closed bolt machine gun, a mechanical malfunction as in the case of
slamfire
A slamfire is a discharge of a firearm occurring as soon as a Cartridge (firearms), cartridge is being loaded into the Chamber (weaponry), chamber. Some firearms are designed to slamfire, but the term also describes a malfunction of self-loadin ...
in an automatic weapon, or be user induced due to training issues or negligence. The phenomenon has also been defined in scientific literature as ''an activation of the trigger mechanism that results in an unplanned discharge that is outside of the firearm’s prescribed use'', where "prescribed use" refers to departmental policies and laws related to the operation of firearms (O'Neill, 2018).
Types
Accidental discharge
An accidental discharge (AD) occurs when there is a mechanical failure of the firearm. This can include things like firearms that do not have mechanisms to render them drop safe falling a sufficient distance, a firing pin stuck forward, a sear failing, or
rounds heating sufficiently to spontaneously ignite in the chamber (as may happen in a closed bolt machine gun).
Negligent discharge
A negligent discharge (ND) is a discharge of a
firearm
A firearm is any type of gun that uses an explosive charge and is designed to be readily carried and operated by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see legal definitions).
The first firearms originate ...
involving
culpable carelessness. In judicial and military technical terms, a negligent discharge is a chargeable offence. A number of
armed force
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily Weapon, armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable ...
s automatically consider any
accidental discharge to be negligent discharge, under the assumption that a trained soldier has control of his firearm at all times. This is the case in the
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
,
[Trevino, Abel. "Proper Weapons Practices Key to Ending Negligent Discharge Incidents in Iraq." ''army.mil''. United States Army. 1 March 2007]
/ref> Canadian Army
The Canadian Army () is the command (military formation), command responsible for the operational readiness of the conventional ground forces of the Canadian Armed Forces. It maintains regular forces units at bases across Canada, and is also re ...
, the Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
, the British Army
The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
and various Police Forces within the United Kingdom.
From an article on a U.S. Air Force website:
See also
*Safety area
Safety area may refer to:
* Safety area (shooting) - in practical shooting, a bay where shooters can handle and holster unloaded firearms
* Runway safety area - surface surrounding runway in case of an aircraft departing the runway
{{disambi ...
*Queen's Regulations and Orders for the Canadian Forces
The Queen's Regulations and Orders for the Canadian Forces (QR&O) are regulations having the force of law for the governance of the Canadian Forces. They are regarded as the primary document of military law and regulations in Canada – aside fr ...
Notes
Forensic firearm examiners typically use more simplistic definitions limited to only two categories: unintentional discharge (no mechanical malfunction involved) and accidental discharge (mechanical malfunction involved).
Further reading
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*
*
*
*{{cite book, last=Johnson, first=Brian R., title=Crucial Elements of Police Firearms Training, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mwvu-am3wbcC&pg=PA111, date=2007, publisher=Looseleaf Law Publications, isbn=978-1-932777-30-7, pages=111–113
*O’Neill, J., O’Neill, D. A., & Lewinski, W. J. (2016, November)
A behavior analysis of unintentional discharges
''The Police Chief'', 83, 14-15.
*O’Neill, J., O’Neill, D. A., & Lewinski, W. J. (2017). Toward a taxonomy of the unintentional discharge of firearms in law enforcement. ''Applied Ergonomics, 59''(A), 283–292. doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2016.08.013
*O'Neill, J., Hartman, M. E., O'Neill, D. A., & Lewinski, W. J. (2018). Further analysis of the unintentional discharge of firearms in law enforcement. ''Applied Ergonomics, 68'', 267-272. doi: 10.1016/j.apergo.2017.12.004
*O’Neill, J., Hartman, M. E., O’Neill, D. A., & Lewinski, W. J. (2018, April)
The ABCs of unintentional discharges
''The Police Chief'', 85, 14-15.
*O’Neill, J. (2018). Functional behavior assessment of the unintentional discharge of firearms in law enforcement. ''Journal of Organizational Behavior Management, 38''(4), 275-287. doi:10.1080/01608061.2018.1514348
*Paulsen, J., (2017, March)
300 Negligent Discharges: Comprehensive Data Science
''ConcealedCarry.com''.
References
Accidents
Firearm safety
Military law