About a week old now, but a Civil War “reenactor” pleaded guilty to reckless handling of a firearm after an incident in which he shot another reenactor during the filming of a Civil War documentary. The “reenactor” attended the event and used live ammunition in his pistol, sending his fellow reenactor to the hospital with a wound to the shoulder. A similar incident occured a few years back at a reenactment of the Battle of Gettysburg.
The reason we bring this incident to our readers’ attention is in order to dismiss any possible concerns this might bring for one of our events. –
One, there is a reason the guilty party is referred to in this post as a “reenactor” in quotes. This person was a walk-on to the event, with no apparent connection to an organization on the field. This is why walk-ons are not permitted at one of our events; every reenactor on the field must be connected to a organization in good standing that has a proven track record of safety.
Two, the safety procedures were not followed, allowing a loaded weapon to be brought to an event. There is a reason that every musket is inspected before a firing evolution, and is secured and searched after the firing evolution. Additionally, the weapon used in this incident was a Civil War era pistol. It is much more difficult to bring a loaded musket to an event.
Incidents like this are few and far between when looking across all reenactment organizations and times. The chances of something like this happening in a 4th Coy event are miniscule due to the emphasis placed on safety and the seriousness of our members when handling black powder.
