re: Matt Branch, former LSU FB player, seriously injured in hunting accident

I guess the pistol isnt as bad because it's in a holster with the trigger protected, you arent actually handling it. I've never heard of an accidental shooting where somebody wasnt handling the gun in some way. To me, loaded pistols are much more dangerous than loaded long guns for many reasons.

Either way it's a shame. I know of a guy who shot himself pulling a shotgun out the backseat of his truck by the barrel end. Thought it was unloaded, safety had gotten pushed off by something else in the seat and something got hung up on the trigger. Perfect mix of a bunch of things going wrong at the same time, which was likely the case here as well. It can happen though.

Eta: luckily it was fine shot and he survived just fine. Had it been buckshot which everyone kept in the truck at all times back then, hed be gone. Dad was always militant about us not loading the gun until we were on the stand and unloading it before we got off. Thankfully it stuck