sjohnston0311
NES Member
Purchased a Bodyguard 380 for occasional pocket carry since my j-frame is just a little bit to big for that role. The problem is it that it's the version with the manual safety, and I don't like manual safeties on a carry gun. My usual carry is a CZ PCR (DA/SA with no safety), so I don't train to deactivate the safety with my thumb and I'm concerned about forgetting to do that if I ever actually need to use the gun in a defensive scenario. Training one way with the CZ, and another way with the Bodyguard might cause confusion when the adrenaline dump hits, so I'm trying to keep things consistent. I do have the option of just carrying with the safety off, but I'm paranoid about accidentally activating it and not realizing it.
The safety lever is easily removed, and Galloway Precision makes a frame insert that sits in place of the removed safety (which from what I understand, is more or less identical to the factory model that S&W used to offer without the safety). I've thought about doing this, but there are concerns of this being used against me in criminal or civil court, to try and establish negligence or disregard for human life (Massad Ayoob, most notably, has written and spoken about this issue). However, since S&W does (or did at one time) offer a factory version of the same gun without the safety (which I would have bought instead if I were able to find one), I figure this might not be as big of an issue as removing a safety device from a gun where that were not the case. It might also be worth noting that I have installed a heavier trigger pull (about 20% heavier, in order to fix an issue with light strikes), which I would argue would actually make the gun safer.
Since NES is known worldwide as a premier forum for legal advice, I figured I would propose the question to you esteemed experts on this here forum. Am I screwed if I remove the safety? Are there any known cases where a removed thumb safety was the basis for the case agains a defendant? If the safety is left on, has anyone had, or heard of, any experiences with this particular firearm where the safety was engaged accidentally due to a loose safety switch, broken spring, etc?
Either way, as soon as I escape to a free state I'm buying an LCP because the Bodyguard sucks.
The safety lever is easily removed, and Galloway Precision makes a frame insert that sits in place of the removed safety (which from what I understand, is more or less identical to the factory model that S&W used to offer without the safety). I've thought about doing this, but there are concerns of this being used against me in criminal or civil court, to try and establish negligence or disregard for human life (Massad Ayoob, most notably, has written and spoken about this issue). However, since S&W does (or did at one time) offer a factory version of the same gun without the safety (which I would have bought instead if I were able to find one), I figure this might not be as big of an issue as removing a safety device from a gun where that were not the case. It might also be worth noting that I have installed a heavier trigger pull (about 20% heavier, in order to fix an issue with light strikes), which I would argue would actually make the gun safer.
Since NES is known worldwide as a premier forum for legal advice, I figured I would propose the question to you esteemed experts on this here forum. Am I screwed if I remove the safety? Are there any known cases where a removed thumb safety was the basis for the case agains a defendant? If the safety is left on, has anyone had, or heard of, any experiences with this particular firearm where the safety was engaged accidentally due to a loose safety switch, broken spring, etc?
Either way, as soon as I escape to a free state I'm buying an LCP because the Bodyguard sucks.