After firing all rounds of your magazine, what is the next step?

• A. Drop Magazine to the ground, and clear weapon while not muzzling anyone.
• B. Refill magazine and continue firing
• C. Eject the chamber and holster
• D. Check for remaining rounds in the barrel

Answer: (A)

The main idea is to render the firearm safe after the magazine is empty. The correct action is to drop the empty magazine and clear the weapon, which means locking the slide to the rear, ejecting the chamber, and visually confirming there is no round left. Throughout this, keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction and your finger off the trigger. This procedure eliminates the possibility of an accidental discharge and aligns with proper range safety before you reload or holster. Replacing the magazine and continuing to fire without clearing can leave a round in the chamber, which is unsafe. Holstering with a loaded chamber or attempting to reload without clearing isn’t appropriate safety practice. Checking the chamber is part of the safe-clearing process, but the immediate step after the magazine is empty is to drop the magazine and clear the chamber.