BAD FORM: Husband Guns Down Wife In a Case of Mistaken Identity

WINTER GARDEN, FL — A woman was shot multiple times — and could easily have been killed — by an armed husband that failed to properly identify his target.

The husband was not charged, according to the Orlando Sentinel, but he could well have killed her.

As the Orlando Sentinel reports:

The shooting happened just before midnight at a house on the 2300 block of Aurelius Drive owned by Allison and Nathan Simmons, both 31. Neither is currently facing any criminal charges.

According to police, the couple gave matching accounts of what happened before the shooting: They had thought they heard an intruder in the house earlier in the night and searched it while armed with the gun, but didn’t find anyone. About 45 minutes later, Allison Simmons went to the bathroom, using her cell phone as a light to maneuver in the dark.

As she opened the door to exit the restroom, the couple reportedly told police, Nathan Simmons awoke — and, thinking his wife was an intruder, fired at her. Allison Simmons was wounded twice, police said. She was taken to a local hospital and her injuries are not considered life-threatening, Winter Garden police spokesman Lt. Scott Allen said.

We have said it before, but it always bears repeating. One of the golden rules of shooting is knowing your target and what is behind it.

You can’t accidentally shoot a friend or family member if you expend the brainpower to identify your target. Now, that’s easier said than done in the middle of the night in a dark house. That’s why it’s recommended (by yours truly, anyway) that for your home defense firearm it is best to attach a light for identification purposes.

You could theoretically just turn on lights wherever you go, but who wants the bother and distraction that creates?

Stay safe out there, folks, and be sure to have a home defense plan that includes a means of proper target identification.

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