NationStates Jolt Archive

Mobile phone video footage is being examined following the accidental shooting of a man in Limerick at the weekend.

29-year-old Philip Collopy accidentally shot himself with a handgun in a house in St Mary's Park, Limerick, in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The shooting was captured on video by a person at the scene with a mobile phone. This phone has since been seized by gardaí.

Gardaí believe Mr Collopy was showing a friend how to kill someone when he put the gun to his own head without realising there was a round in the breach.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0323/collopyp.html

Darwin Award winner here 'fo sho'.

Mobile phone video footage is being examined following the accidental shooting of a man in Limerick at the weekend.

29-year-old Philip Collopy accidentally shot himself with a handgun in a house in St Mary's Park, Limerick, in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The shooting was captured on video by a person at the scene with a mobile phone. This phone has since been seized by gardaí.

Gardaí believe Mr Collopy was showing a friend how to kill someone when he put the gun to his own head without realising there was a round in the breach.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0323/collopyp.html

Darwin Award winner here 'fo sho'.

Famous last words. "Alright everyone, watch how I do this!". Maybe if he'd bothered to follow safe firearms handling procedures, he'd still be alive. I second the Darwin Award nomination.

Famous last words. "Alright everyone, watch how I do this!". Maybe if he'd bothered to follow safe firearms handling procedures, he'd still be alive. I second the Darwin Award nomination.

Isn't one of the safe firearm handling procedures to not point a gun, loaded or not, at yourself or anybody else? Isn't that the first one? Isn't that the big one?

Isn't one of the safe firearm handling procedures to not point a gun, loaded or not, at yourself or anybody else? Isn't that the first one? Isn't that the big one?

Considering his affiliations, I would bet that the gun was illegal (though the asinine gun laws of Ireland hardly lend themselves to lawful gun ownership for normal folk), probably never taken a gun safety course, and is almost certainly a moron at any rate.

Isn't one of the safe firearm handling procedures to not point a gun, loaded or not, at yourself or anybody else? Isn't that the first one? Isn't that the big one?

Specifically, the rule is to keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction at all times. So pointing the firearm at himself was not pointing it in a safe direction. He also didn't keep the firearm unloaded until he was ready to use it, so that's another rule broken. Finally, he should have kept his finger off the trigger.

always assume a firearm is loaded.

always assume a firearm is loaded.

You could figure that into a sex education talk.....

Anyhoo, this fucker was scum, and if you handed him a manual he'd probably use it for toilet paper (if he was in a wiping mood)....About the only good thing of his life was his leaving of it....

luck of the Irish :p

Considering his affiliations, I would bet that the gun was illegal

It was. St Mary's Park is one of the dodgier areas of Limerick as well.

luck of the Irish :p


True, if he had shot himself in the arse he would have dided instantly....

Yeah, I third the Darwin award. I may keep one of my firearms loaded, but it's also known that it's loaded and kept out of sight and away from stray hands because of it. It's only loaded in case someone breaks in. (It's a shotgun and I would rather it be loaded for speed rather than take the time to load each round. And as I said, I keep it where people aren't going to go near it or see it. Not an excuse, but then again, I don't go waving it around. Or even touch it except for cleaning/the one time I actually thought someone broke in.)

Yeah, I third the Darwin award. I may keep one of my firearms loaded, but it's also known that it's loaded and kept out of sight and away from stray hands because of it. It's only loaded in case someone breaks in. (It's a shotgun and I would rather it be loaded for speed rather than take the time to load each round. And as I said, I keep it where people aren't going to go near it or see it. Not an excuse, but then again, I don't go waving it around. Or even touch it except for cleaning/the one time I actually thought someone broke in.)

Seriously, it's a shotgun. If you need more than one round to take down an intruder then you shouldn't have guns in the first place.

One round doesn't take long to load.

Seriously, it's a shotgun. If you need more than one round to take down an intruder then you shouldn't have guns in the first place.

One round doesn't take long to load.

One round takes down one person, what if there are others? Yeah, they may not know it's not loaded, but I'd still rather play it safe.

One round takes down one person, what if there are others? Yeah, they may not know it's not loaded, but I'd still rather play it safe.

You've just blown his mate into little red stringy bits, you have time to load another shell.

Seriously, loaded guns in the house cause huge numbers of accidents every year in the US. Unless you have said shotgun locked up so securely it would take longer to get out than to whack a few shells into it you're running a high risk of someone you love getting hurt.

You've just blown his mate into little red stringy bits, you have time to load another shell.

Seriously, loaded guns in the house cause huge numbers of accidents every year in the US. Unless you have said shotgun locked up so securely it would take longer to get out than to whack a few shells into it you're running a high risk of someone you love getting hurt.

considering everyone around it is scared to death of touching it, save myself, that doesn't sound too likely. I mean really, really scared of the damn thing. I've fired it twice at a range, and since then everyone avoids it like the plague, even when I didn't have ammo. Everyone loves my rifles, but are afraid of getting a broken wrist or worse from the shotgun.

considering everyone around it is scared to death of touching it, save myself, that doesn't sound too likely.

I'm pretty sure that what everyone thinks until they hear that bang and then thud.

Still, whatever, it's your family/friends.

Right, because everyone but myself avoids it and I treat it like a rattlesnake that's about to bite, and it's out of reach for anyone small enough not to be afraid of it.