With apologies to Stanley Kubrick and Peter George, the title just stuck in my head when I was thinking about the latest public AIWB shooting. if you are not familiar with it, there is a Youtube video, made by the victim that I posted below. I’m glad that he survived and decided to share this with the world.
Everything I am discussing about the shooting is based on information provided by the victim. I have no idea how much is correct. There is no video of the shooting that I am aware of. The gun was a stock G23, and the shooting occurred while drawing the gun.
We can assume he pulled the trigger, but we can’t know that for sure. Given the placement of the bullet hole in the back of the holster, I imagine he drew high enough to clear the gun and got his finger on the trigger too early. In his comments, he said that he thinks a gun with a safety or a double action gun could have helped him. Maybe. It certainly would not have hurt, but no trigger action will save you if you put your finger on the trigger too aggressively while drawing.
In my classes, I teach a specific method and timing to teach yourr trigger finger (and you!) when to go to the trigger and when to get off the trigger and go the the register position. This is a crucial aspect of running a gun at high speed, and is an area where many shooters struggle. Not because they are dumb, but because they have never seen or been taught this stuff before. It isn’t rocket science and you can teach it to yourself if you want to be safer.
When you go to the gun, OWB, IWB, AIWB or a race rig, it is all the same. When your strong hand grips the gun and achieves a master grip, your trigger finger indexes on the gun, as high as possible on the frame or slide, without straining. The holster will be in the way but your finger should not care. Just pretend the holster is not there and press your finger into the side of the gun, through the holster. As you lift the gun up out of the holster, your finger naturally moves onto the gun itself, in the exact same position it was in when you started. This is called the register position. It does not move towards the trigger, or come off the frame (or slide if you can get high enough) at all.
One advantage of a high linear draw and a press out, especially for groups of professionals, is that there is a distinct place in the draw where the muzzle of the gun will rotate onto target. Once it rotates so that it is pointed towards the target, any safeties can be disengaged, but the finger still does not move from its register position. Once the decision to shoot has been made (possibly before the gun was drawn, possibly after) and the muzzle is pointed at the target AND the gun has started to move towards the target, your finger can move to the trigger. The gun must be pointed at the target and moving towards it before you move your finger from the register position!
A strict adherence to this procedure (correctly learned slowly and smoothly and perfectly before adding speed) will help ensure that you do not replicate the results in the video below.
When you are done shooting, meaning you have decided that no more shooting is going to occur right now and you want to holster your gun, the very first thing that has to happen is your trigger finger must move back to the register position. Nothing else can occur until your finger is in register. Once that happens and only after that happens, you can move the gun back towards your holster. After you do this well enough for long enough and build real subconscious skill and expertise, you will likely find that your finger moves to the register position at the same time your gun starts back. That is fine and safe, but should not be practiced that way from the beginning.
If you are using a high linear draw, you will simply reverse the draw. Once your hands separate at your torso and your shooting hand is in contact with your torso, you will rotate the gun down towards the holster. At the same time, you kick your hips forward, clear your garment (if applicable) and keeping your shooting fingers or wrist in contact with your torso, look the gun into the holster. Maintain your firing grip on the gun until it is fully seated in the holster. This means that my trigger finger will lift slightly off the gun as it goes into the holster and allow the holster to slide between the gun and my finger. My finger is still in the exact same high position it was in when I drew and when I went back to the register position after shooting.
By keeping your shooting fingers or wrist in contact with your torso, you will prevent yourself from “floating the gun” and possibly pointing it back at you as you holster. When I holster, no part of me is covered by my muzzle at any time. If you do cover yourself when you holster, you are simply doing it wrong.
Though I have a long history with AIWB, it is not a position I ever really recommend to anyone. The truth is that many people are simply unqualified to use it, as they will not take the care needed to safely draw and holster, regardless of their experience, training, shooting skill or interest. Those that may be “safe enough”, are often only “safe enough” when going relatively slowly. Pick up the pace and things can happen fast. A technique you may get away with at a slower speed, may not be what you need at a higher speed. My posts from last year about AIWB and striker fired guns really showed how many people know very little about the subject and are in denial about the safety issues. OSHA will not come and inspect your work, you have to be the expert and do things correctly. I made a quick video on this topic that may help those of us who are visual learners.
excellent read