Thinking there was a burglar, man shoots girlfriend who had gotten out of bed to go to the bathroom

56-year-old Larry Trammell of Brockton, Massachusetts keeps a loaded .38-caliber handgun next to his bed. Early Thursday morning he woke up to a noise he thought was a burglar. Trammell grabbed his handgun, got out of bed and confronted the person just inside the bathroom. According to police reports he "yelled and shot the person one time from approximately two to three feet away."
The person he shot was his 66-year-old girlfriend who had gotten out of bed to use the bathroom. She suffered a single gunshot wound to the torso and was taken to Boston Medical Center where she is listed in critical but stable condition.
Trammell told police he did not look to see if his girlfriend was in bed before he grabbed the gun. Trammell did not have a license for the weapon and was charged with assault and battery with a dangerous weapon, unlawful possession of ammunition, unlawful carrying of a firearm, and unlawful discharge of a firearm.

NOTE: Massachusetts in one of only four states that requires a license to purchase and possess a firearm. The other states are Hawaii, Illinois, and New Jersey. In addition, seven other states require a license to purchase and possess a handgun: California, Connecticut, Iowa, Michigan, New York, North Carolina, and Rhode Island. Thirty-nine states have NO licensing requirements for purchasing and possessing firearms.
Ohh shoot.