Editor-in-chief’s note: We’d like to thank the anonymous individual who came forward with this important information and allowed us to get it out to everyone here at ITS Tactical.
“What the hell was that?!?” she said. It took me a half a second to realize that my gun had just gone off…on my hip…in its holster. My wife and I had just finished breakfast at our favorite café and got into the car.
Me being the passenger, I rotated my torso to the left to fasten my seatbelt like I always do. When I straightened again, my Glock 19 discharged, blowing a 9mm hole through my pants, underwear, the leather seat and bottom of the car’s door frame.
The bullet nicked my hip, but the wound is nothing a bandage couldn’t cover. So what went wrong? Guns never go “Bang” all by themselves.
After ensuring I wasn’t hemorrhaging profusely and didn’t have to make a dash for the hospital, I stayed seated in the car as my wife came around to my door and opened it. I undid my belt and slid the Galco JAK202 Slide Belt Holster, with the gun still in it, off my belt. Why it went off was immediately apparent.
Accidental Discharge
The trusty, comfortable, leather holster I had been using for a year and two weeks had done what a baseball glove does after lots of use; It got soft. This particular holster carries the pistol outside the waistband, but inside the belt. The belt slides through slots in the outer side of the holster.
The problem stemmed from the leather on the inner side of the holster getting soft. A crease formed, which eventually was large enough to extend beyond the trigger. Manipulate the gun in just the wrong manner and this crease is no different than a finger on the trigger. Boom!
I can’t say I didn’t know the crease had been formed in the holster. I trained myself to be sure that when holstering, to make sure the gun was fully in the holster, with the trigger protected. On this day, did I forget to do that when I holstered up? Did the leather finally get so soft that a combination of body movements and interference by the cushy leather seat move the Glock enough to create a situation where the trigger was engaged by the holster?
I don’t think we’ll ever know for sure, but I’ll humbly admit to the former as the likely culprit. However, if it was the latter, then those of you who use this type of holster need to be aware of its limitations and the possibility of experiencing what I did.
It might have been a very different story had the incident happened while we were dining. That bullet ricocheting off the concrete floor could have done untold damage and just as easily killed somebody. Fortunately nobody got hurt and damage to the car was minimal. It will be an interesting conversation with the insurance company to see if they’ll cover the repairs.
Lessons Learned
Holstering your gun can be just as important as drawing it. Make sure you pay attention when doing so. If your leather is getting soft and worn, be sure that it won’t interfere with your trigger or just replace it.
The back of the slide and/or grip was being pushed downward into the leather holster…or the holster was being pushed upward with some force. My guess is the firearm was being pushed and the fold in the holster acted as a finger and depressed the Glock trigger safety.
This truly brings home the importance of taking care of your equipment and ensuring it’s in proper working order. Hopefully you can learn from my situation and prevent an accident like this from happening to you.
Editor-in-chief’s note: We’d like to thank the anonymous individual who came forward with this important information and allowed us to get it out to everyone here at ITS Tactical.
Please share this with everyone you know that carries in a leather holster!
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I think this situation brings to light something that is more prevalent then most of us would like to admit. Most of us will spend hundreds or even thousands of on a firearm with out blinking an eye and then stuff it into a $5.00 holster picked out of a box of bargain basement
pickins or even worse stuff it into a pocket. I have seen it a hundred times. We will clean, replace springs, spit shine our favorite Rosco and never even look at what it is carried in it.
I can’t believe this doesn’t happen more often or maybe it does but most people are to embarassed to admit it.
where did you ever buy a $5.00 holster??????
lol yes sure ya have got to love a glock….the trigger is the safety yep darn good safety ya got right there my next gun will def be a glock lol
So you are saying it was the guns fault….The last time I checked. The person wearing the gear is supposed to inspect it for serviceability……Mommy must still do that for ya…WOW……
This doesn’t quite ring true to me.
I can see that little fold of leather causing a discharge when holstering, but not just pivoting back and forth as is claimed. I just dont see how that motion could create the necessary rearward travel on the trigger.
I totally agree!!!!!
Perhaps when holstering, the trigger was depressed most of the way ,but not quite enough to discharge. Very little additional movement would be needed.
How about the title “Take care of your gear OR it will take care of you”… (or someone else).
Since we are revealing holster problems, I will add to the mix. In 1977, I was carrying a .45 Combat in a Lewis Spring Clip Holster. To the pistol, I had added a trigger shoe an ambidextrous safety. While getting into the drivers seat, my pistol went off in the holster and hit me in my left foot while it was still outside the car.
Cause was determined to be that the safety had worked off and the pistol rode up inside the holster and the internal spring of the holster continued to clamp down on the pistol. The trigger shoe was caught above the spring and my belly roll pushed the pistol, using the grip safety, back down into the holster thereby causing it to go off.
This is something like a perfect storm. Everything was working just right at the same time to cause the discharge. There was no wear on the holster but adding a trigger shoe is not something you want to do with a Colt Commander if you use a Lewis Spring Clip Holster.
Hope someone reads this and if they are using similar equipment that they take warning.
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While exiting the jail I was reholstering my firearm when the trigger caught on the thumb release of the holster’s retaining strap. The strap was very long as it was designed to not go over the back of the slide but around the top of the slide. The bullet entered my thigh and exited through the back of my knee. All told, I was extremely fortunate as all healed well. ALWAYS use care when holstering and if you are not confident in the equipment then don’t use it.
Note the author’s quote “I can’t say I didn’t know the crease had been formed in the holster.”. Wait a second. You KNEW the holster was damaged, and damaged right at the trigger, and KNEW that was potentially Lethal and you STILL used it?
Please turn in your firearms, you are far to irresponsible to keep them.
No, he knew his leather holster had a crease in it. That doesn’t exactly mean it’s going to explode. I don’t think anyone knew that creased leather was potentially lethal — few gun owners expect their holster to try and shoot them.
Here.
http://straightforwardinacrookedworld.blogspot.com/2011/05/glock-galcoholster-accidental-safety.html
I have owned a glock for a decade now. It is reliable, accurate, but not sure I’d use it for carry. If I would have it in a holster I wouldn’t dream of carrying it around with one in the pipe. Your mileage may vary, that is how I call it for myself.
glad you were ok! Nice to see people still drive stick shifts too!
I don’t get why people who carry a pistol want it in a sweat absorbing leather hoster. Glock and Fobus have far superior polymer holsters that don’t break down into mishapen accident initiators.
As a holster maker I’m disturbed by the design of this rig. It’s unfortunate that the title of the article is “worn leather holsters can cause AD’s”. It should be “Worn, thin & poorly designed leather holsters can cause AD’s”. The holster in question lacks the support and weight of the leather to be regularly used inside of a belt, of course it’s going to be crushed and buckled. This is a combination of bad design and careless ownership/gun handling. I am a fan of leather and Kydex holsters, neither of which should cause this kind of problem.
Clearly user error…. WTF did you expect with that cheap ass holster, pushing against the trigger?
Obviously, if the guy had a DA or a pistol with a safety, this would not have happened, even with the beat up holster.
Glock leg strikes again.
Form fitted holster and pistols with 1911 style safeties are the way to go, Like the M&P or the XDM. I know the galco holster is not cheep, But this is still a cheep belt slide holster. Holsters the are made so the mouth stays open are even better. Never have been a fan of the glock for this reason.
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