How to shoot straight: A TV cop who actually gets it right

Wow. I'm impressed. A TV cop show that actually gets something right about handgun safety.

At right is Kyra Sedgwick, star of The Closer as an assistant chief in the Los Angeles Police Department, demonstrating one of the basic rules of gun safety.

If the photo doesn't show this rule clearly enough, let me state it as clearly as I can: Keep your booger hook off the bang switch!

Now Kyra, as the polite Southern lady she portrays, wouldn't put it so crudely, but keeping your finger off the trigger until you're actually ready to shoot is one of those "duh!" rules that gets broken all the time in TV shows and movies about cops and crooks. And while I'm on the topic of Hollywood idiocy, notice something else about Kyra's pistol technique. She's actually holding her pistol with the sights at the top, where her lovely eyeballs can align the sight picture properly.

Turning pistols sideways only works in the movies. In the real world, it's almost a guaranteed way to miss what you're shooting at. But there's always some good in the bad as in this case, it keeps all those idiot gang members and other crooks who watch movies from shooting straight.

I could be a nit-picker and point out that Kyra's two-hand technique leaves much to be desired as she has neither arm locked, making her stance neither Weaver -- which locks one arm -- or Isosceles -- which locks both arms. Her relaxed pose has both arms unlocked, but let us give her the benefit of the doubt and say she's checking out the threat and holding her handgun in the ready position. When she goes into shoot mode, hopefully one or both arms will get locked.

But I won't be a nit-picker about Kyra's technique. At least she's got two of three things right.