Soldier killed when rifle went off ‘without warning’ on exercise, inquiry finds

A soldier died when his rifle went off “without warning” during a training exercise in the Scottish Highlands, an inquiry into his death has found.

Lance Corporal Joe Spencer, 24, was killed on November 1, 2016 when his gun went off unexpectedly during a sniper training course in Tain.

The youngest of three brothers and originally from Hampshire, L/Cpl Spencer joined the British Army in 2011, and became a member of 3rd Battalion The Rifles.

He was deployed abroad on a number of occasions, including on operations in Afghanistan where he was seriously wounded in a grenade attack.

He died while taking part in new sniper operators’ course, which began on October 3 2016 and was being delivered in three phases at ranges at Barry Buddon near Dundee, Tain in the Highlands and in Otterburn, Northumberland.

He was standing waiting for his turn to take part in an exercise, with the butt of his rifle resting on his foot and his chin resting on the barrel, when it went off.

In his determination following a fatal accident inquiry, sheriff Gary Aitken said: “[/LCpl Spencer] was holding his rifle vertically. The butt of the rifle was resting on the toe cap of his boot.

“He was occasionally resting his chin on the suppressor fitted to the end of the rifle muzzle. He was moving the rifle up and down on his boot, very gently.

“From that position it was impossible for him to manually operate the trigger of the rifle.

“Without warning the rifle discharged, inflicting an immediately fatal head wound to L/Cpl Spencer.”

A local doctor was called and L/Cpl Spencer was pronounced dead at 6.45pm.

The sheriff ruled the incident was partly due to L/Cpl Spencer’s “utterly inexplicable failure” to properly unload his rifle following a live fire exercise earlier in the day.

He added his death could have been avoided if he had not been “holding his rifle vertically in close proximity to his body during the undemanded discharge”.

Sheriff Aitken also pointed to failures in the way the training course had been delivered, saying that if the “correct words of command to carry out the unload drill” had been given, the incident could have been avoided.

He also said a safety officer who had been standing behind L/Cpl Spencer during the earlier exercise had left the firing range while the unloading drill should have taken place.

This meant, he said, the safety officer was “unable to confirm” whether L/Cpl Spencer had unloaded his rifle properly following the exercise.

Sheriff Aitken said three separate investigations into the rifle had found no fault with the weapon that would have caused it to fire without the trigger being pulled.

He said the accident was most likely caused by the trigger getting snagged on equipment on the ground while L/Cpl Spencer moved the rifle up and down on his foot, “coinciding with a moment in time when his head was above the muzzle”.

The sheriff concluded the soldier’s death had been “the result of the actions and decisions of a number of individuals, including L/Cpl Spencer himself”.

He continued: “From the evidence available to me, I do not consider that any of these individuals acted with malice or recklessness or had any idea of the catastrophic event their actions would lead to.

“In isolation each of the decisions is relatively innocuous, with the exception of L/Cpl Spencer’s utterly inexplicable failure to complete the unloading drill for the rifle.”

He also expressed his condolences to L/Cpl Spencer’s “family, friends and comrades”.

“He was clearly a much-loved son, brother and partner and a very highly regarded soldier, both by his peers and his senior officers,” he said.

“It is clear from the evidence that I have heard that he was a young man of extraordinary determination and strength of character, committed to the service of others.”

Procurator fiscal Andy Shanks, who leads on fatalities investigations for the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said: “We note the sheriff’s determination.

“The procurator fiscal ensured that the full facts and circumstances of L/Cpl Joe Spencer’s death were led in evidence.

“My thoughts are with the family, friends and fellow soldiers of L/Cpl Spencer at this time.”