The Picayune Police Department held its first Firearm Safety Course for women Monday evening.

Captains C. Ray Carlisle and James Bolton, and Patrolman Marcus Whitfield demonstrated to the group of 20, the proper way to discharge a firearm. The course started with the “Ten Commandments of Gun Safety” before moving on to shooting techniques.

“Don’t point the gun at anything that you do not want to destroy,” Carlisle told the group. “Always treat the gun like it’s loaded and with respect. Be sure of your target prior to pulling the trigger and do not take medications before shooting.”

The officers walked the group through various gun techniques such as proper stance, grip and draw, sight alignment, trigger control and follow through. They demonstrated how the shooter’s center of gravity affects shot accuracy and recovery from gun recoil.

The participants practiced proper grip and finger trigger placement on their own handguns, and were shown the effects adrenaline has on fine motor skills.

“Basically, someone with a 90 percent shooting accuracy will drop down 30 percent when adrenaline kicks in from a dangerous situation,” Whitfield said. “Fine motor skills are non-existent and you have to rely on muscle memory in emergency situations.”

Bolton told the class that it takes 2,000 repetitions for muscle memory to develop.

The group was encouraged to return home and practice dry runs (techniques with unloaded weapons) before the class trip to a local shooting range on Saturday.

The number of participants in the class was intentionally limited to facilitate one-on-one interaction. The group consisted of women of all ages and from all walks of life.

Participants in the group asked questions about proper gun fitting, safe methods of unloading jammed ammunition, aim and current gun safety laws.

Due to the high demand for the class, Capt. Carlisle will be holding five separate classes for 20 people each, in the upcoming weeks, and will be holding another registration upon completion of these classes.