Boyfriend 'Accidentally' Shoots Girlfriend Dead in Shower

Joseph Scott Morgan, a forensic death investigator, notes that claims of 'accidental shootings' are always met with intense scrutiny. In cases involving intermediate targets like walls and shower shells, the bullet's deformation and the unique characteristics of the entrance wound on the victim's body provide critical evidence. This physical evidence is crucial for corroborating or disproving a shooter's statement, as it often tells a story that doesn't align with initial claims.

Morgan details how a bullet passing through a wall and shower shell would be 'grossly deformed,' leading to a 'striking' and atypical entrance wound at autopsy, which investigators would look for to verify the sequence of events. He also mentions the importance of trajectory analysis, similar to the Oscar Pistorius case.

The host and experts express astonishment that Nation Wood, with his background in White House security and experience working with the Secret Service, would make such a fundamental error in firearm safety. His professional training should have instilled a deep understanding of gun handling protocols, making his claim of not knowing the gun was loaded highly questionable.

Wood's LinkedIn profile described him as an 'independent pre-event site security adviser' with experience in 'advanced coordination alongside US Secret Service for senior government and high net worth principles.' The host states, 'when someone with that background says they didn't know their gun was loaded... that does raise some questions.'

Firearm safety expert Steve Wolf emphasizes that the absolute first step before any dryfiring practice is to 'clear' the gun. This involves physically removing all ammunition from the weapon and then moving that ammunition to a separate location, ideally another room, to prevent accidental reloading due to muscle memory. This process must be repeated every single time the gun is picked up.

Wolf demonstrates the clearing process for both revolvers (opening cylinder, removing ammo, visual inspection, activating extractor rod) and semi-automatics (removing magazine, racking slide to clear chamber, visual inspection). He states, 'every time you pick up a gun, you either clear it or you verify that it's loaded.'

A common and dangerous mistake, particularly with semi-automatic pistols, is removing the magazine but forgetting that a live round can still be in the chamber. This oversight means that pulling the trigger will still result in a discharge, even if the magazine is empty. This is a crucial distinction from revolvers, where an empty cylinder might prevent a shot.

Wolf explains that after removing the magazine from a semi-automatic, one must 'rack that slide back and catch that remaining round' from the chamber. He contrasts this with revolvers, where 'you might have a one in six chance that it's going to go off' if a round is left, but in a semi-automatic, 'there's only one place for the ammo to be and that's in the chamber and so it's going to go off the the first time.'