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Sunday, January 8, 2012

Gun-Crazy Country: The Story of a Navy SEAL

Posted by on Sun, Jan 8, 2012 at 10:28 AM

WaPo:

Navy officials have confirmed that a Navy SEAL who accidentally shot himself in the head has died.


San Diego police were called on Thursday after the accident. Police say [Petty Officer 3rd Class Gene “Geno” Clayont, Jr.] had gone to a bar and brought a woman back to his apartment and was showing her guns when he put a pistol to his head, believing it was unloaded, and pulled the trigger.

The date came to an end.

 

Comments (50) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment
Cato the Younger Younger 1
Let that be a lesson to you straight guys. You should be careful when you show your gun off to a girl! You never know when it will go off.
Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on January 8, 2012 at 10:45 AM
Catalina Vel-DuRay 2
There was some ridiculously gorgeous TV star back in the 80's who met a similar end. That gun had blanks, and he put it to his head and pulled the trigger, thinking they were like caps or something.
Posted by Catalina Vel-DuRay http://www.danlangdon.com on January 8, 2012 at 10:51 AM
Posted by biju on January 8, 2012 at 10:56 AM
zombie eyes 4
Don't keep a loaded gun in the crib, and never point it at anyone (including self). Gun rules to live by.
Posted by zombie eyes on January 8, 2012 at 10:58 AM
5
Geno wasn't killed by a gun.
No.
'Twas stupidity that killed the beast.....
Posted by let's hope Darwin got him before he bred on January 8, 2012 at 11:14 AM
6
Ta-DA!!!
Posted by Nothing up my sleeve on January 8, 2012 at 11:21 AM
Free Lunch 7
I've had worse dates.
Posted by Free Lunch on January 8, 2012 at 11:27 AM
markvz 8
I hope the woman had enough cab fare.
Posted by markvz on January 8, 2012 at 11:45 AM
Fifty-Two-Eighty 9
Nothing "accidental" about that. It's called "terminal stupidity."
Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty http://www.nra.org on January 8, 2012 at 11:51 AM
10
Zing, Charles. Zing.
Posted by sahara29 on January 8, 2012 at 11:52 AM
lark 11
Good Morning Charles,
The fellow is definitely a Darwin Award winner. Quite unfortunate. I imagine the gal is quite shaken.
Sigh.
Posted by lark on January 8, 2012 at 12:26 PM
12
Hey! A military man is dead in a horrific brain splattering incident. Bwahahahahahahahah!!!!!!

Am I as hip as you now you hypocritical vultures?
Posted by itsfunnycausehewasnotlikeme! on January 8, 2012 at 12:33 PM
13
@ 2 His name was John Eric Hexum. That was really sad.
Posted by Disc on January 8, 2012 at 12:34 PM
sirkowski 14
Christ, you'd think a Navy SEAL would know the basics of gun safety...
Posted by sirkowski http://www.missdynamite.com on January 8, 2012 at 12:41 PM
15
the NRA and like-minded groups seem to claim that responsible guns are trained and thus all of are fears are unfounded .... well, this Navy SEAL had more training than any civilian gun owner could ever dream of having .. yet a few drinks (i assume) and a rush of testosterone rendered all that training null & void ... making him as stupid as your average thug buying a gun on the street
Posted by olive oyl on January 8, 2012 at 12:42 PM
Gern Blanston 16
Taking premature discharge to a whole new level.
Posted by Gern Blanston on January 8, 2012 at 12:55 PM
Amnt 17
This just in, drunk people do stupid things.
Posted by Amnt on January 8, 2012 at 12:55 PM
18
@2, who is always short with the data and factual information,

That would be Jon Erik-Hexum, former football player and pretty darn good action actor, whose unfortunate death is commemorated in this Youtube memorial:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lo26rcuhp…

Another important death reported today, was yet another death by one thousand cuts of privacy:

http://imgur.com/a/8XoGf#0

http://apple.slashdot.org/story/12/01/08…

"In a tweet early this morning, cybersecurity researcher Christopher Soghoian pointed to an internal memo of India's Military Intelligence that has been liberated by hackers and posted on the Net. The memo suggests that, "in exchange for the Indian market presence" mobile device manufacturers, including RIM, Nokia, and Apple (collectively defined in the document as "RINOA") have agreed to provide backdoor access on their devices. The Indian government then "utilized backdoors provided by RINOA" to intercept internal emails of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a U.S. government body with a mandate to monitor, investigate and report to Congress on 'the national security implications of the bilateral trade and economic relationship' between the U.S. and China. Manan Kakkar, an Indian blogger for ZDNet, has also picked up the story and writes that it may be the fruits of an earlier hack of Symantec. If Apple is providing governments with a backdoor to iOS, can we assume that they have also done so with Mac OS X?"


More...
Posted by sgt_doom on January 8, 2012 at 12:59 PM
19
@2, who is always short with the data and factual information,

That would be Jon Erik-Hexum, former football player and pretty darn good action actor, whose unfortunate death is commemorated in this Youtube memorial:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lo26rcuhp…

Another important death reported today, was yet another death by one thousand cuts of privacy:

http://imgur.com/a/8XoGf#0

http://apple.slashdot.org/story/12/01/08…

"In a tweet early this morning, cybersecurity researcher Christopher Soghoian pointed to an internal memo of India's Military Intelligence that has been liberated by hackers and posted on the Net. The memo suggests that, "in exchange for the Indian market presence" mobile device manufacturers, including RIM, Nokia, and Apple (collectively defined in the document as "RINOA") have agreed to provide backdoor access on their devices. The Indian government then "utilized backdoors provided by RINOA" to intercept internal emails of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a U.S. government body with a mandate to monitor, investigate and report to Congress on 'the national security implications of the bilateral trade and economic relationship' between the U.S. and China. Manan Kakkar, an Indian blogger for ZDNet, has also picked up the story and writes that it may be the fruits of an earlier hack of Symantec. If Apple is providing governments with a backdoor to iOS, can we assume that they have also done so with Mac OS X?"


A sadly similar death happened some years back, when a KVI fan decided to take a fellow office worker, and evidently a weaker member of the female species, to a Bellevue target range to teach her how to fire a pistol --- unfortunately, the force of firing the weapon whipped her weapon-holding arm back, where she accidentally discharged the pistol into the KVI fan standing immediately behind her. (Gun-toting KVI fans, beware.....)
More...
Posted by sgt_doom on January 8, 2012 at 1:00 PM
20
Guns, women, booz and special ops never mixes well.....

http://www.orgnet.com/slumlords.html
Posted by sgt_doom on January 8, 2012 at 1:02 PM
21
Suicide.
Posted by tacomagirl on January 8, 2012 at 1:23 PM
Last of the Time Lords 22
Talk about being insecure about the size of your gun but killing yourself after your date laughs at it really is going over board.
Posted by Last of the Time Lords on January 8, 2012 at 1:59 PM
Catalina Vel-DuRay 23
Oh now, Sgt, don't be bitter. I freely and happily admit that you are my intelectual better when it comes to obscure 80's cultural references. And probably lots of other things.

But you really should try to be more light-hearted, dear. You don't want to turn into one of those dreadful old men that people only visit out of a sense of duty or hope of inheritance. (Although I suppose that won't be an issue in your case. )
Posted by Catalina Vel-DuRay http://www.danlangdon.com on January 8, 2012 at 2:03 PM
24
From now on, no more than 3 drinks when I'm showing my guns off to a date. Unless I'm pretty sure it's unloaded, in that case there is no drink limit. What could go wrong?
Posted by ohthetrees on January 8, 2012 at 2:33 PM
Supreme Ruler Of The Universe 25
If this guy were a drug dealer, Seattle would name a street after him.
Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe http://yrihf.com on January 8, 2012 at 2:34 PM
internet_jen 26
In this day and age is there a way to have a next-generation guns with an external LED light say weather it's loaded or not?

I know most of these 'didn't think it was loaded' gun deaths could be avoided with the very, very simple 'never point a gun at a person' rule. But, ugh, yeah.
Posted by internet_jen on January 8, 2012 at 2:35 PM
Roma 27
...when he put a pistol to his head, believing it was unloaded, and pulled the trigger.

Every time I read about someone thinking a gun was unloaded, it brings back this awful memory...

When I was a teenager, I had a paper route in my neighborhood. One summer evening, while approaching the house of a kid (Scott) in my junior high school, I saw there was an ambulance in front. I found out that another classmate (Randy) had been visiting, Scott was showing him a shotgun that he'd received as birthday gift, he "didn't know it was loaded", and it went off, blasting Randy in the face and killing him. Randy was one of the most popular kids at our school -- a "golden boy", kind of like a young Robert Redford -- and Scott was pretty much ostracized by most kids so he ended up transferring to another school.
Posted by Roma on January 8, 2012 at 2:38 PM
seandr 28
And he was just about to get laid...
Posted by seandr on January 8, 2012 at 3:21 PM
Supreme Ruler Of The Universe 29
#26

Looks like a mechanical indicator exists; however, like safety belt warning systems, people try to disable them:

http://guntalk-online.com/forum/viewtopi…

One person makes the comment...what if the indicator is wrong!

As many have said, the two rules are:

1. Always assume the gun is loaded.

2. Don't point it any anything you do not intend to kill.
Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe http://yrihf.com on January 8, 2012 at 3:25 PM
30
many guns have 'empty' indicators (the old Luger, for example). Many of the gun nuts feel it is bad because then the bad guys will know when you are out of ammo...I'm sure that comes up a lot in these running shootouts with drug dealers and minorities that happen all the time.
Posted by Chris Jury http://www.thebismarck.net on January 8, 2012 at 3:56 PM
31
@25

I'll the bait, Bailo. Which streets in Seattle are named after drug dealers? I would love to know.
Posted by emor on January 8, 2012 at 4:07 PM
32
When I read about this several days ago, the article reported that he wanted the woman to hold the gun, but she didn't want to, so he was shooting it at his head to show that it wasn't dangerous.

It was never clear if this was a woman whom he'd just met at the bar, or if he already knew her.
Posted by seatackled on January 8, 2012 at 4:21 PM
Cascadian Bacon 33
@30
Some guns have loaded chamber indicators, the Walther P99 for example and many others lock back the slide after firing the last round. Regardless the if the indicator says the chamber is empty it should still not be trusted, because if the extractor breaks the gun will read as empty when in fact it is very loaded.

This was an unfortunate incident and underlines the 4 rules of firearms safety:

1) Treat every gun as if it were loaded.

2)Never point a gun at anything you are not willing to destroy.

3)Keep your finger off the trigger until ready to fire.

4) Identify your target and what is behind it.

And stay away from alcohol/drugs while operating firearms.

Sadly gun safety rules were written in someones blood.
I am sure alcohol played a huge role in this incident but you don't hear Charles yammering about banning booze. Approximately 13,000 Americans die a year from gun related homicides, 75,000 die alcohol related deaths. Think of the children Chuck.

Posted by Cascadian Bacon on January 8, 2012 at 4:22 PM
Sir Vic 34
@25 If he was a cop, the SPD would have a parade for him.
Posted by Sir Vic on January 8, 2012 at 5:26 PM
Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn 35
This kind of cocksure stunt is not out of character for a Seal. They recruit guys with a nasty combination of high IQ, desperate need to prove themselves, and a neurotic desire to take dumb risks.

So if the smarts, insecurity, and thrill-seeking are in the right balance, they do all kinds of cool shit. Tip the scales a little and usually they blow some fingers off with a pipe bomb. Or go splat jumping out of a plane. Or shoot themselves in the head...
Posted by Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn on January 8, 2012 at 5:47 PM
36
This is not an occasion for jokes or righteous indignation. A guy, one who rightly should know better and likely after a couple of drinks, did something stupid and now is dead. A woman who witnessed it is likely severely traumatized. A couple of parents are now without their child that they likely loved very much.

Not everything warrants a joke, a callous comment, or political interpretation.
Posted by Looking For a Better Read on January 8, 2012 at 6:16 PM
37
Sounds like he forgot which one was for fighting and which was for fun.

R. Lee Emery will fill you in at http://youtu.be/4kU0XCVey_U

Posted by restlessnative on January 8, 2012 at 7:15 PM
38
Headline: drunk person falls out of window of high rise building and dies. Charles' headline: Building crazy country: the story of why high rise buildings should be banned.
Posted by hifiandrew on January 8, 2012 at 7:39 PM
Supreme Ruler Of The Universe 39
#31

Superfly Place

I thought everyone knew.

Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe http://yrihf.com on January 8, 2012 at 8:36 PM
thatsnotright 40
The story is short on details. Who knows, he may have done it on purpose. Perhaps he wanted a witness. Life insurance doesn't pay out on suicide but it does on accidental death. He also may have planned on killing the woman as well as himself but relented in her case. Rather a fascinating story actually.
Posted by thatsnotright on January 8, 2012 at 8:36 PM
Supreme Ruler Of The Universe 41
No, wait, it is Superfly Avenue:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGIuYX0cC…

Posted by Supreme Ruler Of The Universe http://yrihf.com on January 8, 2012 at 8:48 PM
Knat 42
Thank you, Charles, for that addition. That gave me quite the laugh.
Posted by Knat on January 8, 2012 at 10:55 PM
43
@33 -yes, I think we are all aware of the rules...just pointing out, as per earlier comments, that indicators have existed for a long time.

@38- Buildings serve purposes other than killing people. Handguns do not.
Posted by Chris Jury http://www.thebismarck.net on January 8, 2012 at 10:57 PM
sissoucat 44
@38 I never knew that high-rise buildings killed 13,000 people a year in America.

If it's the case, yes, by all means bann them.
Posted by sissoucat on January 9, 2012 at 2:03 AM
sissoucat 45
You know the current king of Spain ? When they were young, his brother died the same death, in front of his eyes. Truly horrible.
Posted by sissoucat on January 9, 2012 at 2:06 AM
46
Sure, but if the guy had some training on gun safety and operation then he would be fine right? Of course, it would be unconstitutional to require someone to have training on how to operate a gun safely before letting them have one.
Posted by Root on January 9, 2012 at 6:30 AM
47
Now that this idiot is out of the gene pool, the Marines are back to being the best and the brightest, am I right?
Posted by suddenlyorcas on January 9, 2012 at 8:05 AM
seandr 48
@38: ANALOGY FAIL. Modern skyscrapers are equipped with windows that open only slightly or not at all to prevent people from falling out.
Posted by seandr on January 9, 2012 at 8:42 AM
49
I wonder if his mind was able to register the sound of the shell going off before the bullet destroyed his brain. If so, in that short time, was he able to understand that he'd been in error? Probably not, but I can't help but be fascinated by the combination of emotions that someone who has just realized that they are killing themselves must go through between the moment of realization and death.
Posted by colinrichardson on January 9, 2012 at 10:32 AM
aureolaborealis 50
@2: Brandon Lee?

@others:
I live in an army town, and I shoot at the local range, and some of the worst cases of negligence are the military guys ... terrible muzzle control (blithely waving loaded, chambered and charged ARs around), ignoring the "hands off yer gun when anyone is downrange" rule, etc. Whenever I see one of these guys show up, I leave. My guess is that they are completely desensitized to the danger, despite all the training.
Posted by aureolaborealis on January 9, 2012 at 11:14 AM

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