Report says fumbled gun went off, killing reservist

An attempt to catch a fumbled pistol led to the accidental shooting death of a Navy reservist at Cheatham Annex in June, a Navy report has concluded.

Petty Officer 1st Class Ronald Spivey, a 53-year-old postal supervisor from Franklin, was shifting his 9 mm pistol between hands when it slipped, spun 180 degrees, and fired into his chest.

Spivey died at 4:30 p.m. June 21, about an hour after the accident, according to a report obtained by The Virginian-Pilot through a Freedom of Information request.

The gunshot caused catastrophic injuries, said Cmdr. Stephen Jamrozy, judge advocate general for Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, whose office conducted the inquiry. Jamrozy called the shooting "a very unfortunate accident."

The Navy's investigation, known as the manual of the judge advocate general, gave the following account of the shooting:

On that Saturday morning, Spivey reported to his civilian job as a postmaster in Newsoms in Southampton County. He worked a shift in the post office, then reported to Cheatham Annex in Williamsburg, a part of Yorktown Naval Weapons Station, for weapons training.

Co-workers and reservists reported that Spivey was in a good mood that day and had no reservations about performing the live-fire exercise. The unit was scheduled to conduct qualifications on both pistols and rifles.

Spivey was an experienced shooter. In 2005, he qualified as a sharpshooter using a 9 mm pistol and as a marksman on the M-16 rifle.

About 3 p.m. on the outdoor range, four coaches were assigned to the eight lanes of reservists as they fired at close range with pistols. Spivey struck his target from a three-yard line and did a required shift of his 9 mm pistol from his strong hand to his weak hand.

Petty Officer 1st Class Tony Espinoza, one of the coach es observing the exercise, saw the gun tumble from Spivey's grasp during the transfer.

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" he shouted.

Spivey lunged for the gun and squeezed, firing a shot through his chest.

Espinoza grabbed Spivey and set him down on the ground. Another sailor called 911, and a medic treated the wound. Firefighters from the Cheatham Annex Fire Department arrived but did not have advanced lifesaving training to handle the gunshot wound, according to the report.

Spivey was taken to Riverside Regional Medical Center in Newport News, where he was pronounced dead.

Jamrozy said he believes the wound would have been fatal regardless of the type of emergency medical treatment Spivey received. Investigators did recommend a dozen possible changes to live-fire training.

They suggested the Navy consider requiring body armor for all personnel on ranges and combat lifesaver training for range personnel. They also proposed changes to pistol-transfer requirements at the three-yard range.

Individual commands will determine whether to implement the recommendations, Jamrozy said.

The report was forwarded in September to the Center for Security Forces at Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base.

However, the head of the command has not seen the report and does not set policies for the firing ranges at Cheatham Annex, said Chief Katrin Albritton, a spokeswoman.

Beth Baker, spokeswoman for the Navy's Mid-Atlantic Region, said there are no plans to change safety policies at the Cheatham Annex range. The Navy sets a broad rules for weapons handling and safety at ranges, and bases may impose other restrictions specific to their facilities, she said.

A unit or command may choose more stringent protection, such as body armor, she said.

Spivey spent 24 years in the Navy. He enlisted as a teenager in 1973 and served four years on active duty. He re-enlisted in the Navy reserve in 1990, serving a similar duty to his civilian job - postal clerk.

He deployed to Kuwait in 2005 with a Navy logistics support force. The unit was responsible for conducting customs checks on troops and equipment returning to the United States.

"He wanted to be out there that day," said his wife, Sharon Spivey. "He loved the military."

She described her husband as a "gentle, kind, caring" man who loved serving his country.

He also is survived by two sons, Nicholas, 24, and Philip, 21.

Louis Hansen, (757) 446-2322, louis.hansen@pilotonline.com