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The gun fired once into the small living room, frightening the six people in the Northeast Side home.

Panic-stricken, they began asking, "Are you OK? Are you OK?"

Emily Barrientes, 20, and 9 months pregnant, didn''t answer.

She was slumped against the wall. The single bullet that discharged from the weapon hit her in the back of the head, according to a police report.

Barrientes and her unborn child died at the scene.

She was shot just after midnight Wednesday as a friend cleaned his gun in what police are calling an accident. The shooter said he thought the gun was empty.

"I''m just so sorry," he said, unable to hold back tears. "It wasn''t her time. She was 20 days away from being a mom."

Although the case is being handled as an accidental shooting, San Antonio police spokesman Sgt. Gabe Trevino said the decision on whether to charge the man will be made by the district attorney''s office.


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The Express-News is not naming the 24-year-old shooter because he has not been charged with a crime. He referred to Barrientes not just as a friend but as his sister-in-law, saying he is married to her twin sister.

However, the family could not be reached for comment about the incident or the man''s relation to Barrientes.

Described as a loving and outgoing person, Barrientes more than anything was looking forward to being a mom, the man said.

On her MySpace page, photos depict a growing family, including her dog Romeo, her boyfriend and sonograms of her unborn child. Her "baby debut room" is also pictured.

A friend posted a comment, "Emily, you and your baby are angels now. Everyone will miss you."

The man responsible for the shooting said he doesn''t want people thinking this was a case of "kids playing with guns when they shouldn''t be," he said.

He said he knows how to handle guns, especially considering his military experience, which makes it all the more difficult for him to digest what happened.

Sitting alone in the living room Wednesday afternoon, in the same space where Barrientes was shot, he said the woman''s family is not blaming him, even though he can''t stop blaming himself.

"I just wish it had been me," he said.

Friends and family had gathered at his house in the 100 block of Ashland Avenue when the shooting occurred, he said. The group had just returned from a Wal-Mart where he bought items he needed to clean one of his three guns. He started collecting military weapons after completing military service as an aviation mechanic.

Barrientes and the others were eating.

He removed the clip and was dismantling the handle from the barrel when a lone bullet in the chamber was fired.

"It was just three seconds," he said, "and that was it."

"He removed the clip and was dismantling the handle from the barrel when a lone bullet in the chamber was fired.

"It was just three seconds," he said, "and that was it."

Considering the importance of what happened, I wish they would explain that he pulled the trigger on a loaded firearm.

Bando800 wrote:"He removed the clip and was dismantling the handle from the barrel when a lone bullet in the chamber was fired.

"It was just three seconds," he said, "and that was it."

Considering the importance of what happened, I wish they would explain that he pulled the trigger on a loaded firearm.

...and he was pointing it at her.

Bando800 wrote:"He removed the clip and was dismantling the handle from the barrel when a lone bullet in the chamber was fired.

"It was just three seconds," he said, "and that was it."

Considering the importance of what happened, I wish they would explain that he pulled the trigger on a loaded firearm.

maybe im missing something, but these tragic stories always seem to revolve around the fact that no one seems to remember to unload the most important round - the one in the chamber.

Oh God :(

This isnt just tragic, but also so stupid.

It is so so so sad that this man had to learn the hard way that he should have checked and double checked the barrel of the gun he was cleaning.

This is an important lesson in that military personnel are NOT as trained as the media would have us believe they are in firearms.

And the liberals want us to believe that only military and police are the only ones qualified to carry guns :(

dihappy wrote:Oh God :(

This isnt just tragic, but also so stupid.

It is so so so sad that this man had to learn the hard way that he should have checked and double checked the barrel of the gun he was cleaning.

This is an important lesson in that military personnel are NOT as trained as the media would have us believe they are in firearms.

And the liberals want us to believe that only military and police are the only ones qualified to carry guns :(

have you been in the military? like ever? because i am and any and every time we goto the range bolts are locked and cleared, while on the range the bolts are locked to the rear and no actions are taken until the tower says so. when we leave the range we clear all weapons, and then get rodded off the range. unless youve been in the military in the last 10 years please keep comments like these to your selves. training and education of what we do as soldiers has come along way.

02transam wrote: have you been in the military? like ever? because i am and any and every time we goto the range bolts are locked and cleared, while on the range the bolts are locked to the rear and no actions are taken until the tower says so. when we leave the range we clear all weapons, and then get rodded off the range. unless youve been in the military in the last 10 years please keep comments like these to your selves. training and education of what we do as soldiers has come along way.

I was.

I doubt the mechanic spent much time with the SA type pistols described in the article or went through a formal class.

The manual of arms is to drop the mag, eject the round, lock the slide to the rear, visually inspect the chamber, inspect the chamber with a finger, release the slide, then decock the pistol in a safe direction using the decocker or by pulling the trigger. This is spelled out in the Army FM as well as is what is taught at schools in .mil and outside.

The peacetime military ( and this is most of the military outside of the sandbox ) has very poor gun handling procedures. The cold range and procedures you describe above is an excellent example of where process and authority supplant individual skill. In Tier 1 units and in some other units, soldiers are responsible for their weapons and any ND is an Article 15 offense or worse including up to dismissal from service. This creates an environment of extremely high self-discipline. In non-line units, due to the way ranges and drills are conducted, soldiers are extremely lax with their weapons and this creates the mental lack of discipline displayed in the tragic incident above.

The military should go to hot ranges and treat all weapons as hot regardless of the location.

I think the man should be charged with manslaughter.

austin wrote:
I was.

I doubt the mechanic spent much time with the SA type pistols described in the article or went through a formal class.

The manual of arms is to drop the mag, eject the round, lock the slide to the rear, visually inspect the chamber, inspect the chamber with a finger, release the slide, then decock the pistol in a safe direction using the decocker or by pulling the trigger. This is spelled out in the Army FM as well as is what is taught at schools in .mil and outside.

The peacetime military ( and this is most of the military outside of the sandbox ) has very poor gun handling procedures. The cold range and procedures you describe above is an excellent example of where process and authority supplant individual skill. In Tier 1 units and in some other units, soldiers are responsible for their weapons and any ND is an Article 15 offense or worse including up to dismissal from service. This creates an environment of extremely high self-discipline. In non-line units, due to the way ranges and drills are conducted, soldiers are extremely lax with their weapons and this creates the mental lack of discipline displayed in the tragic incident above.

The military should go to hot ranges and treat all weapons as hot regardless of the location.

I think the man should be charged with manslaughter.

peacetime military? you are aware half of our armed forces have seen a deployment, correct. as for line unit versus non line thats negligible because training is based upon you command. units like mine im in a specail troops batt., in a signal company never had an nd(been in over 4 years). i actually find more line units with nd issues b/c they are around it all the time and become complacent. however how much of the brm training you remember is solely up to the individual and noone else. what are these tier 1 units your talking about i have never heard this term. btw a nd has and will always be an art 15 offense but its again up to the command to make these decisions.

austin wrote: peacetime military? you are aware half of our armed forces have seen a deployment, correct. as for line unit versus non line thats negligible because training is based upon you command. units like mine im in a specail troops batt., in a signal company never had an nd(been in over 4 years). i actually find more line units with nd issues b/c they are around it all the time and become complacent. however how much of the brm training you remember is solely up to the individual and noone else. what are these tier 1 units your talking about i have never heard this term. btw a nd has and will always be an art 15 offense but its again up to the command to make these decisions.

You do not know what a Tier 1 Unit is? Google it.

There is a big difference between weapons status in a warzone and outside of it.

You proved my point about training.

I understand that we're discussing the fact that the NDer in the story was military, and that some soldiers don't spend alot of time with their weapons, but I believe that the point is that this guy had received training. This just stresses the fact that it can happen to anyone. I've seen it with those highly trained, former military, high-paid DoD contractors and a full array of different types of units in the operating force. Officers and enlisted, LEO and civilians, it is vitally important to remember that no matter who you are, what training you have, how long you've been working with weapons, an ND is a constant possibility, and the safety rules can only make up for human error so much.

This event is tragic, possibly beyond words, but it also affects all gun owners when you consider how this incident will sway the opinions of people who don't know anything about firearms. The mistakes of one gun owner can reflect poorly on us all. The stakes are even higher for the CHL community.

Before I started my rant, the point I was realy trying to communicate was that debating the specifics of the US military's training has little to do with the topic posted.

austin wrote:

02transam wrote: have you been in the military? like ever? because i am and any and every time we goto the range bolts are locked and cleared, while on the range the bolts are locked to the rear and no actions are taken until the tower says so. when we leave the range we clear all weapons, and then get rodded off the range. unless youve been in the military in the last 10 years please keep comments like these to your selves. training and education of what we do as soldiers has come along way.

I was.

I doubt the mechanic spent much time with the SA type pistols described in the article or went through a formal class.

The manual of arms is to drop the mag, eject the round, lock the slide to the rear, visually inspect the chamber, inspect the chamber with a finger, release the slide, then decock the pistol in a safe direction using the decocker or by pulling the trigger. This is spelled out in the Army FM as well as is what is taught at schools in .mil and outside.

The peacetime military ( and this is most of the military outside of the sandbox ) has very poor gun handling procedures. The cold range and procedures you describe above is an excellent example of where process and authority supplant individual skill. In Tier 1 units and in some other units, soldiers are responsible for their weapons and any ND is an Article 15 offense or worse including up to dismissal from service. This creates an environment of extremely high self-discipline. In non-line units, due to the way ranges and drills are conducted, soldiers are extremely lax with their weapons and this creates the mental lack of discipline displayed in the tragic incident above.

The military should go to hot ranges and treat all weapons as hot regardless of the location.

I think the man should be charged with manslaughter.

Thanks Austin, my point EXACTLY.

Just cuz your a cop or in the military, doest make you a firearms expert even if you can hit a bullseye at 100 yds.

http://www.myspace.com/shorty_723

WOW...what a HORRIBLE tragedy..and yes..its a ND..and he should be charged with involuntary manslaughter for both the mother AND the unborn baby!

I just don't buy all these "gun cleaning" accidents that always seem to create a perfect kill shot. The number one cause of death for pregnant women is violence at the hand of a man. Sounds fishy. Perfect head shot to the back of the head, what are the odds? Anyway regarding the weapons safety training in the military,here's an incident I experienced while in the Army. We all came off the range with our M-16's. As per range protocol, we all had the bolts locked to the rear, magazines out, and every weapon was rodded by a safety officer to check for a live round. We were sitting in the bleachers waiting for the others to finish shooting. Most soldiers had their rifle butts resting on the bleacher footrest and pointing straight up with one hand holding the barrel. A guy one row in front of me was talking, all the while jiggling his 16 near his feet. He hit the butt a little too hard on the bleachers, the bolt slammed forward, and a round went off. It narrowly missed his face.

Many in the USAF shot an M-16 once a year. A lot of those were desk jocks that didn't care much about guns. When I was active duty, we shot M-16 and shotgun once a year. I enjoyed it and paid attention. Some didn't care and were there to check a box. Not everyone that goes to annual training learns something.

Molon_labe wrote:http://www.myspace.com/shorty_723

WOW...what a HORRIBLE tragedy..and yes..its a ND..and he should be charged with involuntary manslaughter for both the mother AND the unborn baby!

Did you see the picture of the girl and another girl holding handguns to chins as if they were blowing the smoke from the barrel? Kinda eerie consider what just happened.