Target Shooting

The four rules of firearm safety

These four rules apply at a staffed range, on your own land, in the national forest, and every time you pick up a firearm. Learn them before you shoot.

You don't have to memorize a thick rulebook to be safe. Almost every accident comes from breaking one of four simple rules — and they work as overlapping layers, so even if you slip on one, the others keep a mistake from turning into a tragedy. They don't change with where you are or what you're shooting. A range, your own land, the national forest, a borrowed gun in someone's living room — the same four apply, every time.

These never change

The four rules of firearm safety

Treat every firearm as if it's loaded. Check it yourself, every time — don't take anyone's word for it.
Never point the muzzle at anything you're not willing to destroy. Control where the barrel points, always — even when you're sure it's empty.
Keep your finger off the trigger until you're ready to shoot. Rest it along the frame until your sights are on the target and you've decided to fire.
Be sure of your target and what's beyond it. You own every bullet until it stops — know what's behind and around what you're shooting at.

At a range, MDC adds three more: keep the action open and the firearm unloaded until you're ready to shoot, keep the safety on until you're ready, and follow the range officer. Treat the safety as a backup only — it's a mechanical device that can fail, so it's the four rules (muzzle and trigger discipline) that keep you safe, not the safety lever.

Wear eye and ear protection every time.
Carry firearms to and from the line cased and empty, with actions open.
Check the barrel for obstructions, and use the correct ammunition for your firearm.
If a round doesn't fire, keep the muzzle pointed downrange and your finger off the trigger, wait at least 30 seconds (a hangfire can still go off), then carefully unload — never turn the gun toward yourself or look down the barrel.
Never shoot at a flat, hard surface or at water — bullets ricochet.
Never handle a firearm after alcohol or drugs.
No horseplay on the line.
Store firearms and ammunition separately and locked, away from children.
Keep an adult right beside any young or new shooter — at MDC ranges, anyone 15 and under must be supervised.

This is a summary, not a substitute for training

This summary keeps the basics in front of you; it is not formal training. A class or range officer can help you learn safe handling in person, with someone watching what your hands are doing. Take a hunter-education or firearm-safety course; MDC's outdoor-education centers offer them, and so do many private and commercial ranges. If you're newer to firearms or to the outdoors, our hunting hub walks through the same safety habits in the field.

Page feedback

See something off, missing, or unclear?

Send a quick note if a source, local detail, or answer needs a closer look, or if the page leaves you with a question.

Send a note