Man Showing Gun Dangers Shoots Self

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) â€” A man demonstrating the dangers of guns for a woman on their first date accidentally shot himself in the leg. <br><br>``It was not some careless, idiotic, Fourth-of-July stupid

Wednesday, July 5th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) â€” A man demonstrating the dangers of guns for a woman on their first date accidentally shot himself in the leg.

``It was not some careless, idiotic, Fourth-of-July stupid thing that happened,'' Kim Barnes, 39, said from the hospital Tuesday.

Barnes and Susan MacDonald, 38, were drinking wine and eating barbecue Monday night when the subject of accidental shootings came up. MacDonald, a hospital technician, was telling her date about the gunshot victims she sees at work.

Barnes, a former Air Force fighter pilot who has been handling guns since he was a boy, decided to make a point about accidental shootings. He brought out his 9 mm pistol and showed MacDonald how a bullet can be in the chamber even after a clip is detached.

Barnes then tried to expel the bullet from the gun, but the mechanism did not work and the hammer went into firing position. He tried to engage a safety mechanism â€” but the gun fired.

``My finger was nowhere near the trigger,'' he said. ``That is a misfire.''

Barnes said he doesn't have any feeling in his left leg below the knee, but doctors at Swedish Medical Center hope the feeling will return when the swelling goes down.

``It was a horrible, terrible thing that happened,'' MacDonald said. But she wasn't scared away.

``I certainly hope I get a second date,'' she said. ``He is a lovely man.''