When the pastor of a Modesto church went to a firearms safety class, he was reportedly hoping to protect himself “from potential dangers.” But the dangerous situation found him, when the instructor of the course appeared to confuse his demonstration gun with his real one, and shot the clergyman in the classroom.Tom Smith is the “Family Life Pastor” at The House Modesto, a seemingly massive Christian church in the Central Valley city. He was a student at a firearms-related self-defense class at Modesto’s Personal Protection Institute on December 5 when, Fox 40 reported Tuesday night, the instructor of the course shot him during “a role-playing scenario.”According to the Modesto Bee, instructor Phillip Rushing had used “a training gun, a rubber fake with no firing mechanism,” during the class, but “as the class was ending…he removed that prop from his holster and replaced it with his real handgun.”That’s when a student asked Rushing how to manage an attacker armed with a knife. Smith volunteered to play the attacker role and “During the scenario, the instructor drew the firearm and it accidentally discharged,” Modesto Police Department spokesperson Heather Graves says.Smith was struck on his right side just above his hip, Fox 40 reports, and has been in the hospital ever since.
Source: California Clergyman Shot By Instructor During Gun Safety Class: SFist
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